The Second Daughter
by Bradamante13
Summary: Four years after the Princess's attempt to take over Spectra, a girl is found who holds the key to the past and could change the path of the future...
1. Prologue: Tell Me a Story

*About four years after the Princess's attempt to take over Spectra....*  
  
Orin sighed, looking up at the sky. This burden had been laying on him for some time, since the Princess disappeared. It got heavier every day the girl was lost. Where had she gone to? She couldn't have vanished into thin air, as it seemed.   
  
"Orin?" Someone set his hand on Orin's shoulder, interrupting the sprite's train of thought. He turned, and smiled when he saw who it was.   
  
"Yes, Krys?" he asked the fifteen-year-old beside him.   
  
"Is everything all right?"  
  
"Yes, my dear boy, everything is fine." Orin winced. He hated lying to the boy--no, not a boy anymore--who was like a son to him.  
  
"Orin," Krys said with an exasperated sigh, "I've known you for thirteen years, and everything is *not* fine."  
  
Orin winced again. **Nothing* gets by him,* he thought proudly, *no matter how hard I try. He'll make a wonderful father someday. His children won't be able to hide anything.* "You're right, Krys, everything is not fine, but it's nothing you should have to worry about."  
  
"Maybe it's not, but if it's got you so stressed, then I want to worry about it."  
  
"Krys, it's nothing."  
  
"Does it have anything to do with the Princess's disappearance?"  
  
*I suppose he would have guessed eventually.* "Yes, it does, but it isn't your problem."  
  
Krys sat down beside his friend. *It's a wonder girls aren't falling at his feet,* Orin thought. *He's smart, witty, brave, a hero, not to mention handsome. But I should be grateful girls aren't. He doesn't need to be drawn into that yet.* He smiled fondly, forgetting about the Princess and the daughter for a moment. *He's grown too fast. I can remember when he still sat at my feet and asked me to tell him stories of the Great Ones.*  
  
"Orin," Krys said patronizingly, bringing the sprite back to the present problem, "I'm an AFW Liutenant. You can trust me."   
*And the youngest one ever,* Orin thought, knowing Krys wanted to say it. *If anything takes you down, young man, it's your arrogance.* "I have no doubt about your reliability, Krys. I just don't know if you want to hear it."  
  
"Of course I do."  
  
Orin sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Very well. Do you remember the story of the daughters of the Great Ones?" he asked.  
  
Krys frowned. "No, not really. Isn't it about Theirael and Melayel? I can barely remember it."  
  
"The Legend says that at the beginning of time, the universe was created by the Great Ones. Immortal, wise, omniscient, the were the most perfect of creatures. Then, all at once, they left. Where they went, no one knows. But their children stayed. The two oldest, Amira and Ceron, married, and ruled the planets that now have become the Alliance. The other planets were divided up among the younger siblings. Earth was given to the middle child, who was killed by Jiann in the First War of Good and Evil, and after that, the world was left on its own, which is why it is behind the rest of us. And Rainbowland was given to the seventeen youngest, who were insupportable."  
  
"So many of them for one planet? What happened to them?" Krys asked, realizing how much Orin had left out when he had told him the tale when he was a child.   
  
"I'm getting to that. The first Wearer of the Belt and the Prism Warrior lived there with the twelve Color Kids and Moonglo, Stormy, and Tickled Pink. After the ruler of Earth was killed, they decided that it was their 'duty' to watch over it. And so they did, for hundreds of years. The Wearer of the Belt and the Warrior, after a time, left to explore the universe, and try to find their parents. They gave the Belt and Prism to two young children, who were then made immortal. They lived in peace for a while, and then the Evil One attacked Rainbowland. When he gained control, the Wearer of the Belt, Eos, fled, along with Kale, the Prism Warrior. He left the Prism with me, and I don't know what happened to them after that."  
  
"They were cowards to run!" Krys exclaimed.  
  
Orin sighed. "You have to understand, Krys, that once the Evil One got hold of the Belt, all hope was lost. Eos was a wonderful girl, but she was not meant to be the Wearer. She was not as strong as Rainbow Brite. She could never have faced him in direct combat as Wisp did. She knew that he would not kill her, only try to make her tell him how to abolish all color."  
  
"But didn't he know how to do that already?" Krys asked.  
  
"No. He could not make all color in the universe disappear. But she knew how, as you know how to destroy the Prism, and how to prevent that from happening. It takes more than hiding the Belt to get rid of all hope. Where was I? Oh, yes. The only thing Eos could do was leave, and hope that he would follow her and leave Rainbowland alone, and Kale refused to leave her side. It was braver of her to go than it was to stay. If he found her outside of Rainbowland, she was worse off than she was before. But the plan didn't work. The Evil One took over Rainbowland, killing five of the Color Kids--Tartus, Phoebus, Amphitrite, Eostre, and Heliades--in the process. He hid the remaining seven in Rainbowland, and threw Stormy, Moonglo, and Tickled Pink into a deep corner of the universe."  
  
"But why keep the seven with him, and not the other three?"  
  
"Because he had more to fear from those seven. Stormy and Moonglo dealt with darkness, which he didn't mind, and Tickled Pink can't work without Red Butler. He needed to have the seven where he could keep an eye on him. It took years and years, even after the Evil One was defeated, for those three to work free of their prison."  
  
"Oh. That makes sense."  
  
"So then the girl Wisp came, and found the belt and the Sphere of Light, and--"  
  
"And defeated the Evil One."  
  
Orin shook his head. "No, Krys. That is where you, and most others who don't know the story, are wrong." He drew in a breath. "The Evil One was not defeated. Only weakened, and banished to the edge of the universe. So he lay there in wait, silent for many, many years."  
  
"Then what happened?" Krys asked, eager to hear the rest of the story.  
  
"Will you stop interrupting? Anyway, something like 30 years ago, he decided that his legacy should live on. So he took a mistress." Orin saw Krys make a face.  
  
"Yes, that was my reaction, too, but you asked to hear it. Amira and Ceron, as you may recall, had two daughters. They were as different as day and night. Theirael, the elder, had red hair, like flame, eyes as blue as the sky, and a heart as black as coal. She was loud, ambitious, and knew what she wanted--power. And she would do anything to get it.   
  
"Her younger sister, Melayel, was her opposite. She was quiet, kind, and gentle, with blonde hair and green eyes. She was a sorceress, carrying on her mother's trade. Theirael had no magic whatsoever, fortunately."   
  
"Their parents gave them both planets to rule when they left to join the Great Ones. Theirael was given all of the planets that are now the Alliance except Spectra, the mysterious planet of magic, which was given to Melayel.   
  
"The Evil One took Theirael as his first mistress, and she had a child by him. A girl, not the son he wanted. So he threw both of them back to the Throne World. And then, fifteen years later, Melayel caught his eye."  
  
"That *can't* be good."  
  
"No. It wasn't," Orin said, his eyes unfocusing as he remembered her, the sweet child he had known, only a child still, not even a woman, the darling of Spectra, fair and compassionate, who had so much to offer...  
  
"Orin," Krys probed gently.   
  
Orin shook his head, snapping back to the present. "Yes, where were we? Melayel went to live in his corner of the universe with her one servant, and she also had a child by him. The Evil One threatened many times before it was born to kill her and it if it were a girl. When it was born, the only one present was the maid. And Melayel's child turned out to be a girl.  
  
"She begged the servant to run away, and take the child with her, and run to Spectra, keep the child for six months, and then leave her with a family on earth. The servant left, the girl--named Melglirael--with her. Melayel told the Evil One she had a boy who died a few hours after he was born."  
  
"But he would *kill* her for that, wouldn't he?"  
  
Orin turned to look at him sadly. "She knew that, Krys. By this time, she didn't want to live. The only thing that brought her joy was her child, and her child was gone. She had nothing to live for. That is what the Evil One does to people. He takes away their will to live.   
  
"The Evil One killed her, and threw her body into the sea on the Throne World." He paused.  
  
"Is that *it*?" Krys asked, disgusted.   
  
"There is a little more," Orin said doubtfully. "It is a rumor I heard a few years ago, nothing more than that. But people say that Melayel had a necklace, passed down through sorceresses in her family since the Great Ones. It is said that she gave it to Melglirael before sending her away. Whether it is true or not, I do not know."  
  
"What about Theirael?"  
  
"She stayed on the Throne World, raising her daughter, and poisoning the child's mind to hate color, which she blamed for the Evil One's downfall, and to hate her sister and her sister's child. And to this day, the Princess still believes everything her mother told her."  
  
"The Princess? *She's* Theirael's daughter?!?  
  
Orin nodded. "Yes. She is."  
  
Krys said nothing for a few minutes. Then, "What about Melayel's daughter?"  
  
Orin sighed. "That's what has been troubling me. She was raised for six months on Spectra, then taken to Earth, as her mother asked. After that, no one knows. Not even the servant remembers where she left the child. She could be dead for all we know."  
  
"So you're worried because you don't know where she is?" Orin nodded. "Why start worrying now? Why not years ago?"  
  
Orin started laughing, and he laughed, and laughed, and couldn't stop. "You think I just started worrying about this last night? You're less observant than I thought, Krys. I've worried about this for years. Only now, her threat is more menacing."   
"How so?" Krys asked sullenly, sulking about being reprimanded.   
  
"Look around you, Krys. The Princess seems to have vanished in thin air, Rainbow Brite and the Color Kids are maturing--which *never* happens without a crisis being near, plus they can't get to Earth, the Alliance is falling apart, and Earth is....well..."  
  
"Worse than ever," Krys supplied. "I see your point. So you think this--Melglirael--has something to do with it. But if you're right, Orin, she's younger than I am. How much damage could she do?"  
  
Orin looked at him sternly. "Age never puts a limit on how much damage--or good--a person can do. You should remember that. Why, look at what you and Rainbow Brite did to the Princess, when she thought you were children, which you were, by the way. Neither can we forget Melglirael's parents, Krys. A conqueror of worlds and a sorceress! Even your parents weren't so ambitious as that. We can only hope her mother's blood flows stronger than her father's."  
  
Krys nodded, and they sat in silence, each pondering the mystery of the second daughter.   
  
Author's Note: Well, here it is. My first RB fic, though not my first fic. I'm considering entering it in a contest (once I get more done), and I thought I'd see what kind of reviews I get here. If I get a good response, I might continue it. If I do, don't exect updates often. I want to work on this story all together, not just in chapters. REVIEW!!!!!!!!! As I tell my friends, "FEEDBACK!!! I NEED FEEDBACK!!!!!! NO FEEDBACK EQUALS NO STORY!!!!!!!!!!!" Of course, this was in a more extreme case, but.....   
  
I think I should have said this at the beginging, but *these* mean thoughts, or emphasis on a word. Two in a row (Orin: **Nothing* gets by him....) means thought and emphasis on word. Thanks! 


	2. Please, No Nightmares

*Somewhere on Earth...*  
  
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!  
  
  
  
"Uggh..." Sel moaned as she rolled over. She hit the button on the clock and sat up. "God, Mondays suck beyond suckiness," she muttered, looking at the rain pouring down the window. She didn't want to get up. She didn't want to face another day as the "school freak." She wanted to stay in bed, fall back asleep and dream. Her dreams were always so nice, except for the occasional nightmare. *Like last night,* she thought with a shudder. *Maybe if I went back to sleep, I could erase the bad dreams with good ones. It's what usually happens.*  
  
Somehow she managed to haul herself into the bathroom. Glancing in the mirror, she was surprised it didn't crack. Her curly blonde hair was a frizzy mess, like always. Her eyes--green, with a tinge of gold near the middle--were bloodshot, with bags and shadows under them from lack of sleep. Her skin was white under its spring tan. Filling the cup by the sink and drinking from it, she noticed that the rim of the cup was stained red. She rolled her eyes and spit the water in her mouth into the sink. It, too, was tinged red. She drank again, and spit. *God,* she thought, *why does this always happen? Honestly, every nightmare....* She looked into the mirror again, and noticed her bottom lip had split, and the blood had dried on her chin, not to mention the fact that her mouth was full of blood from some unknown injury.   
  
*I should tell someone,* she thought as she brushed her teeth. *I really should tell Mom. She always says I can tell her anything.* She grinned at her own stupidity, and winced when her lip split again. *Yeah, right. Mom, I've been having this nightmare since I was two, and it's happening more and more often, and there's this dead lady who I think is my birth mother telling me that I'm a Dreamspeaker and that I should go to Rainbowland to be trained. My ass she'd listen. Hell, I don't even know what half those things are. Dreamspeaker. What was I on when I went to sleep last night?*  
  
She spat into the sink, more foam stained crimson washed away by the clear water. *And what was all that about that little furry guy? He had a kind of nice voice--in a grandfather type way. It made him sound really fatherly and sweet--* she smiled crookedly-- *despite the fact he was yelling something along the lines of "The daughter of Melayel will cause the destruction of the universe! We *cannot trust her!*" Greeeat. Add death and destruction to the list of subliminal messages being sent to me by The Voices of the Rice Crispies.*   
  
  
  
Much as she joked about her nightmares, they scared her. She shuddered when she thought about the dark, shapeless shadow that had haunted her for as long as she remembered. Her last thought before sleep was always, "Please, no nightmares." And it didn't help; the nightmares came anyway, without want or permission.   
  
*And this one.... this was worse than all the others. They're getting worse all the time.* Sel felt her heart speed up as she remembered last night's horror, the dark shape, the woman's screams of agony, the smell of death, the red light, and worst of all, the cruel, high laugh that cut through it all like a spear, ignoring all reason and all laws of the universe, sharper and grimmer than any sound Sel had ever heard.  
  
As she tried to calm herself, Sel fingered her necklace for comfort. "Get a grip, girl," she told herself. "Come on. It's over, it's okay, it's all right," and her breathing slowed.   
  
She looked at the necklace to keep her mind from going back to the nightmare. It was silver, with a Celtic knot charm on it. She had had it for as long as she could remember. She assumed it came from her birth mother, wherever she was now.   
  
  
  
Sel had wanted to find her birth parents for years, since she was old enough to understand what "adopted" meant. Sel loved her adoptive parents; they had taken her in when they found her, a six-month-old baby on the doorstep, with no clue of who she was. But still...there was something missing. She wanted....no, *needed*--to know why her mother would have given her up. Was she not good enough? Had her parents even wanted a daughter? Did they even give her a name?   
  
Sel's adoptive parents had named her after her mother's sister, Selene Iris Rennald. Yes, *Selene.* Yes, *Iris.* Yes, they had named her after a moon goddess and a heavenly messenger. Sel couldn't blame her parents, but come on. Selene? Had they any clue about the teasing she would get? It only hurt her more that her hair was light blonde and frizzy, and that she couldn't even think about dating a boy in her grade without gagging. She sighed. *Thirteen is way too young for dating. Maybe in three months.*   
  
She turned the knob on the shower so the water could heat up. *I wish I knew what those dreams meant. I mean, it couldn't be prophetic, could it? Definitely not. I haven't had a prophetic dream in a year or so, and I used to get them all the time. Weekly, even.* As she pulled off the T-shirt she wore to bed, she caught a glance of herself in the mirror. The mark was still there. The only people that knew about it were her and her parents. She always made sure to hide it otherwise. Just above her left breast, there was a small brown mark, shaped like a circle with a five point star inside it. Her mother claimed it was a birth mark, but Sel knew better. She had never seen a birth mark that outright resembled anything aside from blobs. It had to be something different, God knows what. She had hoped that one day she would wake up, and it would be gone.   
  
Sel hated that mark. She wasn't even sure why, but for some reason it reminded her of evil, of a bad memory someone was trying to forget, but kept surfacing again and again in their brain. Whenever she saw it, she couldn't shake the feeling that it was the by-product of a brush with a being that was so purely evil that it made her shudder. "Stop thinking like you're a character in Jekyll and Hyde, Selly-girl," she muttered, using her silent nickname for herself. "You can ask your birth mother. When you find her, you ask her. And when you find her, she'll take you to live with her and you'll never have to see THS again. Now get ready for another day of hell on earth."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Monday at school started normally. Being shunned by the jocks and ditzes as Sel carefully made her way towards her locker. Book-checked in the hallway. Homeroom teacher droning on about the Industrial Revolution (they were eight chapters behind where they should be, considering it was April). Lila sick again.   
  
*Of course she's sick. The one day I really need to talk to her, she's sick. Great,* Sel thought, thinking about her best--and only--friend. *Just to spite me, of course!*   
  
"Watch it, bitch!" someone said as he knocked into her. For the second time, Sel's books spilled to the floor as she went down on her knees. She looked up, straight into the face of Kyle Falklaris. *Crap. Crap, crap, crap. I just had to run into him of all people!*  
  
  
  
"Scuze me for being alive!" Sel spat at him. He growled and walked on. Sel sighed and went to the process of picking up her books. She was surprised when her hand bumped into someone else's. She looked up from the floor to see the face of a boy she had seen around, but didn't know.   
  
"Sorry," she said, hurridly pulling her hand away from his.   
  
He just smiled. "It's okay," he said. "You look like your day isn't going too well." He grinned, handed Sel her math book, stood up, and reached down to give Sel a hand. "I'm Brian."  
  
"Sel," she said, shaking his hand. "I haven't seen you around much, Brian."  
  
He shrugged. "I guess our schedules aren't very alike. Like right now, I should be at..." he looked at the clock, "...English."  
  
*English, while I'm at algebra. In an entirely different wing of the school. Ah.*   
  
"Why aren't you there today?"  
  
  
  
"Doctor's appointment. I just got here." The bell rang, signaling the start of second period. Sel slammed her hand on her forehead.   
  
"CRAP!" Sel yelled. "I'm late!"   
  
"Whoooaa," Brian said. "You know, if you're gonna be late, you might as well take your time about it."   
  
Sel grinned. "Good point."  
  
"So, you're in eighth grade?" Brian asked. Sel nodded. "Thirteen?" She nodded again.  
  
"And you're a ninth-grader, right?" She asked.   
  
  
  
He answered, "Yep, and fourteen."   
  
*He's a grade above me,* Sel thought. *So why the heck is he being nice to me? I mean, everyone in this whole dang school knows about me. Not to mention the junior high is the scape goat of the school.*   
  
They continued to talk about various subjects during their walk to their separate classes. Eventually Sel came to the math wing. "Well, um, thanks for the help, Brian," she said awkwardly.   
  
Brian smiled. "No problem. Sel turned around, preparing to walk to her class. Then--  
  
"Hey, Sel?"   
  
"Yeah?" She turned around to face Brian again.   
  
"Do you have anything to do tonight?"   
  
"Uhh.....no," she replied as she, bewildered, wracked her mind for activities. "I'm not doing anything."  
  
"Could I walk you home tonight?" Sel was so taken aback by the question that she stared blankly at him for a few seconds, then stuttered, "Uh, yeah, sure. Whatever."   
  
He smiled again. "Great. I'll meet you at your locker after school. It's in the eighth grade hall, right?" She nodded, and he turned and walked away.   
  
*What the hell?* Sel thought as she walked into math. *First a nightmare, then a boy I never even met asks if he can walk me home. How much weirder will today get?*   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Sel sat beside her locker after school, after managing to avoid most of her classmates for the day. After the strange talk with Brian, her day had been relatively normal. Boring, yes, but blessedly normal.   
  
*Somehow, I get the feeling that I'm not going to have much more normal,* she thought as she waited. *But how many friggin times today have I had a 'feeling'?*   
  
Just at then moment, someone said, "Hey, Sel, you ready?" and knocked Sel out of her thoughts.   
  
She looked up to see Brian. "Yeah, I'm ready."   
  
"You live anywhere around here?" Brian asked.   
  
  
  
"About a mile away," Sel answered.   
  
"That's about where I live," Brian commented.   
  
"Really?" Sel asked, interested. "I thought I was the only one in the neighborhood who went to THS."  
  
  
  
They got into a conversation about the school baseball team, then into homework, their families, and their friends before they fell silent.   
  
*Why is he being so quiet? I asked him what group he hangs with at school, and he says he doesn't. He can't be a loner like me. I thought Lila and I were the single loners at THS. And when I ask him about his other friends, he says he doesn't have any. Why wouldn't anyone want to be friends with him? He's nice and funny and smart. I'd kill to be friends with a person like this, especially since we have a lot in common.*   
  
  
  
*Maybe it has something to do with the grayness. Maybe he notices it too. But why would he? Even Lila doesn't and she's the one who believes in all that voodoo stuff.* She glanced at Brian, who was kicking a stone along the sidewalk. *And yet... I think there's something that this boy knows that makes him more that he seems. So, maybe if I ask, he won't think I'm crazy. It's worth a shot.*  
  
Sel took a deep breath, and, hoping he wouldn't think her insane, said, "You know, it's funny, but have you noticed everyone's been seeming melacholy lately? I know I sound nuts, but it just seems like everything is a little less....colorful,"   
  
Brian's eyes flickered. "Yeah, I noticed that too. And I haven't seen a rainbow for a really, really long time."  
  
  
  
Rainbows. Sel had nearly forgotten about them. She barely thought about her childhood obsession anymore. When she was a little girl she had been convinced that there was a little kid like her making rainbows. She swore that she had seen her once. But, of course, it couldn't be true. Especially now.   
  
"I guess it's the after effects of the long winter," she commented dully. "I mean, my mom said that was the hardest one in ten years, including the one four years ago, and that's saying something."   
  
"That was a bad year," Brian agreed. "It was really tough not to give up."  
  
Sel nodded, knowing the feeling well. "I've been feeling like that a lot lately, too."   
  
  
  
"Like you just want to crawl into bed and stay there--"  
  
  
  
"Because you know that today's not going to be any better than yesterday and there's no point in trying?"  
  
Brian nodded. "Yeah. Exactly."  
  
*So that means that he knows how hard it is to keep yourself from feeling that way, and how much a fight it takes to believe that it's going to get better. I guess there *is* more to him than meets the eye.*  
  
"You know what I wish?" he asked suddenly, startling Sel out of her thoughts.   
  
"What?" She moved to the curb and checked for cars before she crossed the street, Brian beside her.  
  
"I wish--"  
  
"Brian, watch out!" she yelled as a bright red car came out of nowhere. She pushed him to dodge, but knew that neither of them were going to get away in time.   
  
  
  
She heard a horn, and yelling and the sound of metal grating against bone, and felt a horrible, paralyzing pain in her head, and before the darkness gathered her into its merciful arms, her last thought was, "Please, no nightmares."  
  
She didn't realize she was stepping into a living one.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
When Sel woke up, the first thought in her head was that she felt considerably worse than she had ever had before. For once in her life, she could understand why Zeus was willing to let Hephaestus split his head open to stop his headache. Her arm felt broken, and her whole side was so tender it hurt to move.  
  
It felt like her brain was dead. She couldn't remember what had happened. She couldn't think of anything at all, except that she wished her side would stop hurting. She moved her arm, and gasped when she realized how much it hurt to move it. She picked up the other and touched her head. It was sticky. *Did I get pop on my head somehow?* she wondered, not realizing how absurd her thoughts were; she didn't even realize that she was in a grassy field speckled with star-shaped trees. When she looked at her hand, she figured out that the stickiness was blood.   
  
*Great. *More* blood. Just what I need.*   
  
  
  
Then it hit her. The car. The darkness. The plea.   
  
Brian.   
  
"Oh, shit..." she muttered aloud. "God, *please* let him be okay.... Brian?" she croaked, wondering if he heard her. After waiting a few minutes, she realized that either he was still out or he was nowhere near here. She hoped beyond everything that it was the former.   
  
Slowly, painfully, she sat up. And gasped.   
  
She noticed the trees. And the flowers, and the rainbow waterfall, and how beautiful everything was. It was so *colorful.* Even in her anxiety, she couldn't help but stop and marvel at this lovely Utopia.   
  
  
  
After catching her breath, and her thoughts, she started crawling in a circle, trying to find him. She had no luck.  
  
"This is impossible," she muttered as she crawled painfully, pausing every few seconds to overcome her vertigo. "I haven't found anything, not a backpack, not a hat, not even some blood, and I know that car couldn't have missed him entirely." She started up gently sloping hill. To her, it seemed like trying to climb Everest. "Even if I got him partly out of the way, he still would have been clipped by it, at least. And where *is* he? In all those vanishing stories all the people end up in the same place. And-- Oh my freakin God...."  
  
The top of the hill had a perfect view of the entire valley she was in, from the moutains to the beautiful castle to the caves to the small village of tiny huts.   
  
"Oh," she breathed, trying to control her amazement. The land around her created such an aura of serentity and happiness that she could feel its smooth warmth against her skin. Suddenly nothing seemed to be as bad as she thought it had.   
  
The fears and worries gone, she felt overwhelmed by fatigue. Sel lay down on the grass, careful not to jar stiff muscles and bones more than she had to. With the nightmares refusing to leave her alone, sleep had become a long neglected friend.   
  
*Rest....it sounds so nice.....and I doubt any night-demon would dare trouble me here....* She felt like she was floating, borne on a breeze of calm.   
  
Suddenly she heard, in chittering and changes in tone, someone say, "Get Rainbow! Now! She needs help! She's hurt!"   
  
Sel cracked open one eye sleepily. A small, furry green creature stood above her, chattering to a blue being of the same size. In her fatigue, the realization that they were the same kind as the creature in her nightmares escaped her. "Are you going to give me something to make it hurt less? That'd be really nice...." She saw the red-haired boy with worried eyes kneel beside her, and the last thing she did before she slipped into blessed darkness was whisper, "You're all right. "You'll keep the nightmares away. I know you will."   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
She heard the voices before she saw their owners. "She's slept so *long.* I'm starting to worry that she might not wake up at all."  
  
"You'll do something, Canary. I know you will. She'll be fine."  
  
"I don't know....if the Sprites hadn't found her and Krys hadn't brought her here when they did, I don't doubt that she would have died."   
  
"I know. It was lucky."  
  
  
  
"How did Brian take it?"   
  
At the mention of Brian, Sel opened her eyes to see who the speakers were. One looked like a girl of about twelve, with strawberry blonde hair in a high ponytail and a blue dress. The other looked a little younger than her, with the lightest hair Sel had seen on anyone under fifty and a yellow shirt and pants.   
  
"I'm not sure. Usually I can tell, but in the last year, he's changed so much. I can't tell you how relieved I am that he's not hurt."  
  
"We all are, Rainbow. This year has been bad. We can only hope that the next will be better."  
  
"Maybe."  
  
Sel tried to roll over, and gasped. Any pain she had felt before now seemed like a blessing. Her mind hadn't been working properly, and she couldn't comprehend what she had felt. Before, a dull ache and numbness had covered everything, a glass wall had separated her from the worst of the pain. Now, everything was poignant and sharp.  
  
The girl with the light hair yelped happily and came over. "Good! I guess I hadn't any need to worry then! You're better now, I guess, since you're up."   
  
Sel gaped at the girl's absurd comment. How could she be fine when there was lightning in her body, burning her from the inside out?  
  
"Canary, give her something for the pain. I think it's killing her." The girl with the darker hair--Rainbow, she remembered-- smiled at her. "But from what Brian told us, you got off easy. Getting hit by a car sounds really painful."  
  
Sel could only nod.   
  
"I guess you're wondering where you are. You're in Rainbowland, and I'm Rainbow Brite. This is Canary Yellow, the Color Kid of Yellow. Together with the Sprites and the other Color Kids, we put all the color in the world. When you got hit by that car, you were brought here for some reason that we can't figure out. Brian ended up closer to the castle, and we found him almost immediately. You we didn't know about, since Brian was unconscious, but the Sprites found you, and Krys brought you here. If it weren't for him, you'd probably be dead."  
  
Sel stared.   
  
So it was true. When she was little, she had thought someone-- a girl like her-- had made the rainbows and put them in the world and made all the colors. She hadn't known how she had known, and all her friends, even at that age, had thought her crazy for it. And she had eventually dropped the idea to make them stop teasing her. But she had been right. And when she asked herself, "how?", she didn't know the answer.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
She slept, on and off, for the next three days. The light-haired girl-- Canary-- took care of her most of the time, chattering cheerfully to fill the dark silence Sel kept between them. In a day she learned not to look Sel in the eye; her eyes were filled with spiteful questions and anger. She had been ripped out of her home, away from the only parents she knew, and they couldn't-- or wouldn't-- tell her why.   
  
When Canary wasn't there, a sprite usually was. Once a girl in an orange dress, Lala Orange, had taken care of her, talking nonstop about how she would show Sel how to use makeup when she was better. Sel pretended to sleep to get her to be quiet. All she wanted was rest and an explaination as to why she was here.   
  
*And I'll probably never get one.*  
  
On the third day, Canary said cheerfully that she had a visitor. Wondering who would be insane enough to come to see her and hoping it was Brian, Sel sat up, trying to see who her visitor was before he came in.   
  
It wasn't Brian. It was a young man Sel thought looked vaguely familiar, but couldn't say from where. He was, she thought slowly, not bad looking, with red-brown hair and determined gray eyes.   
  
"Sel, this is Krys. He was the one who brought you here after the sprites found you. Krys, Sel." Canary said cheerfully.  
  
He nodded at her, and Sel stared at him harshly, though she didn't know why she was angry.   
  
"I guess I'll just leave you two alone to talk, since there's probably so much you want to ask each other," Canary remarked, and left them into the hands of a cold silence.   
  
Well," Krys said after a few minutes, awkwardly attempting to fill up the unnatural quiet, "you look a lot better than the last time I saw you."   
  
"I guess I should say thank you," Sel said quietly. "For saving my life and all."   
  
"No problem," he responded loftily. "I'm used to getting girls out of messes."   
  
  
  
Sel stared at him, hoping she hadn't heard what she thought she heard in his tone. "Are you saying girls aren't capable of looking after themselves?"  
  
He shrugged. "Females just don't have the sense and strength of men."  
  
"Wait just a durned second! I didn't ask to get hit by that car, and I barely saw it coming! And it seems you've forgotten, a *boy* was also hit by the same car!"   
  
"Brian wasn't hurt as badly as you were," he remarked absently, as if her protest was futile and of no importance.  
  
"That's only because I shoved him out of the way!"   
  
"And now you're trying to compensate for your mistake." A slight smirk that Sel wouldn't have seen if she wasn't an expert at reading people to find out if they were making fun of her or not tugged at Krys's lips, suggesting her ignorance and stupidity at fighting truth.   
  
"Stop that! I'm not an idiot! D'ya want me to prove it? Just let me get out of this dratted bed--" She started to stand up, her body screaming at every movement.  
  
He put up his hands, visibly shocked. "Don't! You'll hurt yourself!"   
  
"You're hurting me and every other woman in existance more! Take all that back or I'll kick your ass!"   
  
"Will you calm down?! What is wrong with you?"  
  
"I've been hit by a car, yanked out of my home, chatted at by garrulous idiots who don't realize how boring and meaningless their lives are, and now insulted by a male chauvinist pig for being female! That's what's wrong with me! I want to know why I'm not in my room with my cat and my mother now, and I want to know how I can get back, *now!* I have a life there, and I want to go back to it! Leave me alone!" Sel sat down and, without knowing why, began to sob.   
  
He put his hands down, and quietly said, "If that's the way you want it, then I'll tell them to let you be."   
  
Sel nodded, not looking up. She was so lost in misery that she didn't hear the door shut. She cried until she fell asleep, forgetting even her plea for the nightmares to leave her alone. And they came in a rush of fever, more intense then ever, and she tried to fight them off, kicking and screaming silently, begging them too late to leave.   
  
She didn't wake when someone walked in and pulled the blanket back over her shoulders, and ran a hand over her too-hot skin, whispering, "I'm sorry."   
  
And the nightmares left. 


	3. A Miracle

"Fever," Canary muttered. "Of *course* she had to get a fever. Of *course* that gash on her head had to get infected. Of *course* it did, because things aren't bad enough around here."  
  
A gentle hand on her shoulder calmed her down a little. "It'll get better, Canary. It has to."  
  
"Only because it can't get any worse, Rainbow!" Canary snapped. Then, as her words sank in, she gasped and tried to murmer an apology, only to find that the words refused to leave her mouth.  
  
Rainbow looked at her, worry in her violet eyes. "What's come over you, Canary? You used to be so happy and sure of the goodness in the world that I couldn't help but smile when I looked at you. And now--"  
  
"And now I've turned into a miserable old bat who can't do anything but complain and bring everyone farther down than they already are. I'm sorry." Suddenly Canary felt like crying.   
  
"You don't have anything to be sorry for. You can't help it. It's not your fault that I can't get to Earth, and that the Color Crystals aren't working, and that Krys and Orin hardly ever visit, and--" Rainbow's voice broke, and she started crying.   
  
Canary was shocked. Never, in her wildest dreams, had she thought Rainbow was even capable of crying, and yet here she was, sobbing like a child. Rainbow had always been the strongest, the one that held them-- and the universe-- together. She always put on a smile for them, no matter how worried she may have been underneath. Canary couldn't bear to see her like this. She looked down at the floor.   
  
*Rainbow *can't* cry, Canary thought. *She's too strong to cry. She even managed to taunt Murky when he kidnapped her.* A horrible thought, even worse than the unthinkable image in front of her, came into her mind; *Rainbow's life is bringing color to Earth, and she can't do that anymore. If she can't do what she loves more than life itself, then would she--* She wiped the thought from her head before it was finished. Never, never would Rainbow bring herself that low--or would she?  
  
*If it's bad enough to make Rainbow cry,* Canary mused, *then nothing can fix it. Nothing short of a miracle.* She looked up when she heard foot steps, and saw Rainbow walking away as a sprite called her, that brilliant, shining smile back on her face. *I doubt Rainbow wants anyone to know about that. So I won't tell them.* She picked up her tray and walked back into Sel's room. The green-eyed girl was still feverish. As Canary put a fresh cloth on her forehead, she looked at her patient's face, and murmered, "Whoever you are, little girl, it would be good if you could become a miracle for me."   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
She was floating in oblivion. It was cool and dark, with no night haunts to bother her. She had no qualms with this place. In fact, it was very nice, after months of finding no respite for torment under the sun or the moon. *Like Leto.* An odd thought to pop into her head at a time like this. *Hera was jealous that she was pregnant with Zeus's child, so she sent a dragon to chase after her and give her no rest until the child was born; but she could have the baby anywhere the sun shone, either. So she had to wander until her she found an island just under the surface of the ocean, where the sun didn't reach. And then came Artemis and Apollo.   
  
*Maybe this could be my island.*  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Brian, *no.* You're not strong enough," Rainbow protested.   
  
"Rainbow, I have to see her. It's my fault she's like this!" Brian exclaimed, frustrated at not being allowed to see Sel. Canary had told him that she had a fever and was getting worse, and it was all because of him (Canary hadn't told him that; he figured it out himself, what other reasonable conclusion was there?). She had pushed him out of the way, and he had been the one who had wanted to walk home with her in the first place, if it hadn't been for him she probably would be safe and sound right now.  
  
"For the last time, it's not your fault!"   
  
"It is! I wanted to go home with her, and--"  
  
"Brian, stop it. What's wrong with you? I've never seen you this worked up!" the wearer of the Color Belt asked, a little jealous of Brian's attention for the girl.  
  
Brian looked at her and smiled, trying not to laugh. "It's not what you're thinking, Rainbow. Not like that," he assured her. "It's just that....I sort of feel responsible for what happened to her. If not for her, I might be dead. I owe her, big time."   
  
Rainbow smiled a bit, the first time Brian had seen her smile in a long time. "I'm sorry, Brian. I know I'm being difficult--"  
  
  
  
Brian had to laugh at that. Rainbow, being difficult? He had never heard her say a harsh word to anyone but Murky. And the Princess and Count Blogg, he supposed, but she was so good, through and through, that it was hard to imagine even that. "You are *not* being difficult, Rainbow. You're never difficult." Was it Brian's imagination, or did Rainbow sit a little taller on the edge of the bed after he reassured her? Certainly she smiled more.  
  
"Brian, it's so good to see you again. I've missed you more than you can imagine."  
  
"Actually I can, because I probably missed you at least the same you missed me." Brian paused, not wanting to ask the question he had been dreading to ask. "Rainbow, why didn't you come see me if you missed me so much? Were you mad at me, or--"  
  
"Brian, of course not!" *Not mad at you,* she thought, *never you. Oh, I was hoping to wait a little before I had to start explaining to you, but....I guess it's now or never.* She took a deep breath. "Brian, the reason I didn't visit you was because I couldn't get to Earth," she blurted quickly. *There now,* she asked herself, *was that so hard?*  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
*I guess it was.* She couldn't look him in the face. "Just what I said. I couldn't get to Earth. Something, I don't know what, was blocking me. I don't think it's Murky, it feels a lot stronger than that. Not the Princess, either, though I know that she's disappeared and even Orin doesn't know where she is. And there's so much else, too, and I haven't been able to tell anyone here, I can't let on how bad it is, they wouldn't trust me at a--" She broke off when she felt Brian's arms around her.   
  
  
  
"You know what your only fault is?" he asked her quietly. "You're too hard on yourself. You blame yourself for things that can't be helped, and then you don't let anyone help you."   
  
Rainbow leaned back against him, glad for someone she could talk to, finally, after all these months of silence. For the last year, as things had grown worse and worse, she had grown quieter and quieter, the only showing of her fears and doubt when she cried herself to sleep, where only the walls could see her weakness. And her nagging mind wouldn't let her rest until she had turned everything she had ever done wrong over in her mind. Once in the middle of the day, she had locked herself in her room for hours; she couldn't remember why she had started crying at first, but knew she kept crying because no one came to see if she was all right, and she had felt totally, utterly alone.   
  
  
  
"Brian," she said, again close to tears, "thank you." And then she broke down in sobs of relief.   
  
He let her cry herself out, holding her and telling her it was all right. It was a long time before she could get herself together. She wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled. "Thank you. I think I needed that." She stood up to leave.   
  
"Rainbow? Brian called. She turned around. "If something's wrong, or you need someone to talk to--" he shrugged-- "I'm here."   
  
Rainbow nodded. She was halfway to the door when Brian said, "And, Rainbow?"  
  
  
  
"What is it, Brian?" She looked at the serious expression on his face, and wondered, *What now?*   
  
  
  
"Sel. She knew."  
  
  
  
"What?"  
  
"She knew, somehow, that you weren't getting to Earth. I mean, she didn't know about you, but she knew that something was wrong. No one else I'd ever talked to noticed it. She did."   
  
Rainbow's mouth dropped. Sel? But she seemed so....ordinary. How in the name of the Great Ones could she notice that? Most humans had no idea that she and Rainbowland existed, even on a subconscious level.   
  
Rainbow nodded. She would take this in stride, just as she did every other problem that came up. "Thanks, Brian. I'll keep that in mind." She turned around again.   
  
"What does it mean?"  
  
Rainbow shrugged. "It means that she's more than we thought she was."  
  
"But what?"   
  
"Who knows? She could just be extremely perceptive, or--"  
  
"Or?"  
  
"Or she could be the savior we've been waiting for."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
It was a nice place, she had decided. Very peaceful. Now she laid back and lost herself in the corners of the calm, serene darkness.  
  
"Melglirael." It was a voice she knew well, low, soothing, rich, but urgent and fearful. *Not now,* she begged. *Please, not now. Just a little longer to rest. Maybe if I ignore it....*  
  
"Melglirael. Melglirael, answer me."   
  
Sel opened her eyes reluctantly. "I'm here," she whispered, looking at the gray nothing-place where she always met this woman. The same sight greeted her as always: the vague shape of a woman, wreathed with soft golden light, her face hidden in the sea of glowing rays. "I'm listening."  
  
  
  
"You must go back," the woman said simply. "Here you float between Life and Death. You must choose one way or the other, and you must choose life."  
  
Sel choked. She couldn't go back. To face the pain and heartache that she felt every day there, when she was just now free of it....the thought was too much to bear. "Why?" she asked angrily. "Why can't I just stay here?"  
  
"You have a purpose there. You must go back and fufill it. Then you may rest."  
  
"But I'm tired now!" Sel was on the verge of tears. She had just found her rest. Why did she have to leave so soon? "And how can I go back there? I'm not supposed to be there, I'm supposed to be on Earth!"  
  
"It's not your choice, Meglirael. Even Artemis had to leave her mother's island when she came of age. And you, little one, are of age."   
  
"I'm not ready! Can't I have just a little longer?"  
  
"The universe is in danger *now,* Melglirael. And you are the only one who can save it." The woman reached forward and touched Sel's cheek, and Sel felt the soft, gentle warmth that the woman brought with her fill her to her bones. "The road will be hard, very hard. But you will survive it because you are the daughter of Melayel, and a sorceress of the line of Amira. And you will be strong. Now go. And take your mother's love with you." She vanished.  
  
  
  
Sel sighed and wiped away the tears on her face. Then she shut her eyes, and came back.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
It was darkness around him, not the dark of night, which never scared him, but hard, pressing, cold darkness that wasn't of this world or any other. It felt *wrong.* He hadn't been this scared since--never. Weapons and the chance of dying didn't scare him. It wasn't in his nature to be scared of living things. But this harsh, chilling feeling wasn't alive, and it wasn't dead, either, and it held a great bitterness against everything alive or dead for being either. It choked him, yanked the life-giving air from his lungs, and the warmth from his body, leaving him alone and cold. His body, mind, and soul were numb, leaving him with nothing. And the numbness was so much worse than pain, than torment, than death even--  
  
And blessed light flooded his senses as he opened his eyes. His pillow was a few feet away, and the blanket was wrapped around his feet. The floor hurt his back, but at least he could feel it.   
  
  
  
Krys sat up and rolled his neck to get the stiffness out. Sleeping on the floor for five nights straight didn't do anyone any good, and though he would never admit it, it really killed that place where he had been knocked into a wall several times when he and Rainbow had fought the Princess, and a few times since then.   
  
  
  
But because of guilt, he offered to sleep on the floor in that *girl's* room to make sure she didn't die in the night or do something completely female like that. And so he dealt with the pain, just because he felt bad. *Human emotions are insane. The girl gets a fever and I figure it's my fault for chewing her out. There is no way her body's functions are related to anything that comes out of my mouth. And I *still* think it's my fault.*   
  
He stood up and went to check on Sel. And blinked. And shook his head. And still wasn't sure he was seeing what he was seeing.   
  
  
  
Sel was, for the first time in over two weeks, sleeping calmly, her face peaceful, though a hint of sadness played at the corners of her mouth. He put his hand on her forehead. It was cool. "What the--" he muttered, completely perplexed. For two weeks straight she kicked and screamed silently in her sleep, looking as though she were enduring more pain than a human should have to take. And then with the fever came the impossibly serene look of one lying in Death's arms, though Canary assured him the fever wasn't enough to kill her, and that worried him more than the silent pain. And now, suddenly, she was fine. Pale, but fine.   
  
*Unnatural,* he thought. *That's all it is, completely impossible.* And if anything scared him, it was the unnatural and impossible and strange.  
  
He stared for a few more seconds, then went to tell Rainbow.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
The light hurt her eyes. She squinted against the bright, and touched her hand to the back of her head. It didn't hurt. That was odd. She had remembered it hurting from her dreams--  
  
*You must go back.*  
  
*You have a purpose there. You must go back and fufill it.*  
  
*Even Artemis had to leave her mother's island when she came of age.*   
  
*The universe is in danger *now,* Melglirael. And you are the only one who can save it.*   
  
And then her own thought, that hurt worst of all--- *This is where I'm supposed to be. I'm not going home.*  
  
She started to cry, but then she heard the lady's voice in her head, clear as the sunlight on her face: "The road will be hard, very hard. But you will survive it because you are the daughter of Melayel, and a sorceress of the line of Amira. And you will be strong."  
  
*Sorceress.*  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Canary came to see her later that day, when Sel was still deep in thought. And she seemed even more cheery than usual, for some reason, and expressed this surplus emotion by chattering constantly. Sel only caught a bit of what she was saying, until one name caught her attention.  
  
"--and Krys was so worried about you, I've never seen him that irritable before--"  
  
"*What?!*"  
  
Canary looked at her. "I know, it was a surprise to the rest of us too, we didn't think you got on very well, but he stayed in here almost all the time, and he volunteered to sleep on the floor in here for almost the whole time you had the fever. It was kind of a shock, actually."  
  
"But--I thought he didn't like me--"  
  
"Apparently, not."  
  
Sel was shocked. She wasn't used to people doing nice things for her, especially ones she had fought with the first--and only--time she spoke with them, let alone caring for her while she hovered betwixt life and death. "But, why--"  
  
"None of us know, Sel, but it might just be that he likes you." She shrugged.   
  
  
  
Somehow, Sel didn't think that was the case.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Within a few days she was walking around the Color Castle, as she learned it was called. She knew where just about every room was, and she had learned the names of all of its inhabitats. She got along with all of them well enough, but for some reason, she and the purple-haired girl Stormy tended to seek each other out. Sel found her explosive personality-- so passionate in everything!-- intriguing, and Stormy saw something in her that Sel couldn't quite figure out.   
  
She also got on very well with quiet, pretty Moonglo. Moonglo was very curious about Earth, and though she was only available in the early morning or the hours before dusk, they had several very good conversations in which Sel attempted to explain the American government, without much sucess.   
  
"Checks and balances? I'm sorry, Sel, but I still don't understand."  
  
"That's how each of the branches of the government hold power over the others, the checks, and how the other branches of government hold power over each branch, to keep one branch from getting to powerful, the balances."  
  
"But why are they called branches?"  
  
Pause. "That's a good question, and I really don't know."  
  
She and Brian saw each other often, having interesting conversations where laughs were frequent and quiet moments few and far between. He was very helpful in explaining what everyone in the color castle did, and what everything was for.  
  
"What's this?"  
  
  
  
"The color console, the Color Kids use it to moniter the color in the world--"  
  
"And these?"  
  
"Star Sprinkles, Rainbow uses them to put color into things."  
  
"And what's that gray place out the window?"  
  
"The Pits."  
  
"What're those?"  
  
"Where Murky and Lurky live, all dark and gray and depressing, the Color Belt doesn't work there."  
  
"Who're Murky and Lurky?"  
  
"They're sort of Rainbow's arch enemies, they're always trying to take the color out of everything."  
  
Sel paused. "Are they why the world's been--"  
  
"No." Brian shook his head. "Rainbow says it feels a lot stronger than them. They're kind of bumbling idiots."   
  
  
  
"How so?"  
  
"They never manage to do anything right, usually take a few steps backwards, actually."  
  
"Why does that make them idiots? Maybe Rainbow's just a lot stronger than them."  
  
"She is, but that doesn't mean they're smart."  
  
  
  
"I'm not saying they're smart, I'm just saying they might not be idiots."  
  
Brian rolled his eyes. "What ever you say, Sel."  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
After a week of wandering or so, Sel was walking to her room--in a bad mood, incidently, having had nothing to do since she woke up (her offers to help with cooking, cleaning, and pet care were shrugged off)-- when she noticed a door room that she hadn't been in. She peaked in, and saw--books. Hundreds of them, at least. They were stacked haphazardly in piles on the floor, on the shelves, on any available space. Papers were strewn everywhere. Sel was appaulled. She was one of those "crazy girls" who couldn't stand to see books mistreated. She walked all the way in and called, "Hello?" When no reply came, she inspected the room further. It was one of the largest rooms she had seen in the castle, with a high, vaulted ceiling, shelves at least 15 feet tall (complete with moving ladders), and several tables and comfy looking armchairs. She supposed it was meant to be a library, but looked as though it had been out of use for quite some time. She picked up a book off a pile-- "The History of the Great Ones and the Universe"-- "Fowl or Foul? A Study of Hippogriff Brutality"-- "The Moste Noble Study of The Human Bodie and Its Workings," which looked like it was a good eight hundred years old. She looked around the the room. With a little work, some sorting, dusting--she thought as she sneezed-- maybe some painting--this would be a nice room. Something for her to do, and she was sure that once cleaned up, this library could rival any in the universe. She smiled, pulled her hair back, and set to work.  
  
  
  
Author's Note: Sorry it took so long, again. I hope some of you caught the Harry Potter reference in the last paragraph. I couldn't resist. I've decided to combine some chapters, to make it easier for me. So from now on, each chapter will seem more like two shorter ones combined, and I'll probably update about half a full chapter at a time, so look for the DATE of update, not how many chapters, from now on. And things will get a bit more exciting from here on out, thanks for sticking with me. Rainbow, Stormy, Brian, Krys, and of course Sel will probably be the most important characters from here on out, plus a few characters of my own.   
  
A little bit of a side note: School started yesterday for us Iowans, and for the first semester I have 8 classes every day, no study hall, and possibly another class independently (I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY'RE NOT EVEN OFFERING ANTHROPOLOGY!!!!!!!!!!!). Needless to say, I'm not gonna have a lot of free time. Sorry.   
  
-Brad 


	4. Spectran Sunset

"Krys!" He turned around at the sound of his name, and smiled slightly as he saw Rainbow approach him. "Hello, Rainbow."

"Krys, are you leaving tomorrow?" she asked, straightforward.

Krys nodded unhappily and kicked a rock. "Orin contacted me last night. He said there's some sort of emergency on Spectra and I've already stayed longer than I should." He sighed. "I'd much rather stay with all of you, though."

"Well, we'll certainly miss you, Krys– but don't you miss Orin and your friends?" Rainbow asked, a little perplexed.

Krys nodded, a bit of a cynical grin streaking across his face. "Of course I miss Orin. But between our jobs and his crazy premonitions we've gotten used to not seeing each other. And I do miss Barder, Sestina, Rilla, and Issana, but they're...well...they're not you and the Color Kids, Rainbow."

"I'm sure they're not. I'm sure they've got all their problems under control and are very organized, pulled together members of the AFW."

Krys couldn't help it. He laughed. "Rainbow, before you start on how under control Spectra is, let me tell you about them."

She smiled. "Come on, Krys, they can't be that bad."

"Oh, you just wait. Barder is a good man"–Rainbow tried to suppress a giggle, since she knew Barder was only a year older than Krys– "but he's a little arrogant and always thinks he's right, and– what is so funny?"

Rainbow couldn't help it. That comment, and Krys's oblivion to the pot calling the kettle black statement he had just made, did her in. She bent over laughing, clutching her stomach, as Krys frowned in disapproval.

"I'm so sorry, Krys," she said, once she pulled herself together, "it's just that...well...you must have a hard time dealing with a person like that," she finished, congratulating herself on her quick thinking.

"Oh, of course. I can't stand pride– or not being able to admit when you're wrong." He smiled. "Although, it is good to see you laughing again." The concern in his eyes was something only Rainbow could see behind his mask. "You've been doing much better since Brian showed up."

"I've missed him. Just like I miss you when you're gone. But that's enough of that. Tell me about the others."

"As you wish," Krys replied with a flourish, never one to resist an opportunity to talk about his life (or to be dramatic). "First of all, Sestina chose her name. It used to be something along the line of Jane, I think. She's never told me. Anyway, she's a pacifist. She joined the AFW as a peacekeeper on Riison two years ago, but after those suspicious attacks last year, she was drafted as a member of the fighting force." He grimaced. "Let's just say that she's not happy with the situation.

"Rilla is nice, she's a medic, and she likes having fun. She works hard, but she never gets into anything over her head. She's the type of person who's a really good confidante. And as for Issana..." Krys searched for the right words to describe his friend. "She's...bubbly. Not the type of person you'd expect in her position. First female captain in the AFW," he clarified. "And she's not so much older than me, either. Her record is really quite impressive." He looked at the ground. "But I'll still miss you."

Rainbow was stunned by his rare admission of emotion, and threw her arms around him. "I'll miss you too, Krys," she murmured. "Come and visit soon."

Krys sniffed slightly. "You're my best friend, Rainbow. I'll come back as soon as I can." Rainbow nodded and let go of him. That was all she needed to hear. She smiled at her friend, who had helped her through so many hard times, who she hated saying goodbye to, and turned towards the Color Caves. Krys wiped hurriedly at his eyes, telling himself a little dust was in them.

"Oh, Krys?" Rainbow stopped and turned around, taking a breath and a risky guess at the same time. "If you want to say goodbye, Sel's in the library."

"Thanks, Rainbow." He smiled, and, after Rainbow was well on her way, jogged back to the Castle.

Sel finished sorting through a pile of reports on the prismatic wonder that was Spectra (someone apparently was under the impression he was writing poetry instead of a mundane paper) dating back to 4097 B.C. and smiled. I'm making progress, she thought as she looked around the room. All of the stacks on the floor had been sorted, and many were already on shelves. Organized by subject, in alphabetical order by author.

She was so absorbed in studying her success that she didn't hear the door open. She only turned when an impressed voice whispered, "You don't waste any time, do you?"

Krys stood in the doorway, his mouth agape. "How in the world...hello," he finished, giving her a nod as he noticed her gaze. Sel nodded in return and looked back down at her books. Despite seeing Krys around the castle occasionally, she hadn't talked to him since their fight weeks ago. She was afraid he was still angry, but if he were angry, why would he have taken care of her? Krys confused her, and she didn't like confusion.

She continued to sort her books as Krys strolled through the room, examining her handiwork. A few minutes later he said, "Sel...this is amazing!"

She didn't look up. "It's only half done. I've still got to put them back on the shelves, and file the loose pages, and paint and the like. It'll be a long time before this library is in working order again."

"But, still...I can't believe you managed to do all of this!"

She shrugged. "It's not a big deal. I needed something to do. No one would let me help anywhere else," she added bitterly.

"So you found your own work." Krys nodded at her, and if Sel had looked at him, she would have noted a look of approval in his eyes– and a little bit of curiosity.

A pause. "I...I wanted...thank you, for taking care of me. I'm sorry I caused you trouble."

She looked up to find Krys standing only a few feet in front of her. Sel did note the almost quizzical look on his face. Then he smirked and opened his mouth, but Sel spoke before he could get half a word out– and before her mind could stop her. "The proper answer is not that you are used to taking care of females. The courteous thing to say is that it was no trouble and you're welcome, Sel."

A true smile broke across his face, not a smirk, but a full grin that Sel hadn't seen, and he chuckled. "It was no trouble and you're welcome, Sel."

She nodded, his contagious smile infecting her own face, and looked down again. She couldn't believe her own daring. She felt like she had successfully de-wired a bomb. She wasn't used to putting herself out and not being shot down. "Good," she choked out. Her throat was tightening–why? she wondered. The only time her throat got tight like that was when she was afraid. But there was nothing to be afraid of! It was just this boy, whose name she'd never even said to him, who bewildered her and interested her and scared her at the same time. No one, save Rainbow and Brian, had ever looked at her with such a scrutinizing gaze as he turned on her now. Why did it always seem to her that behind his even smile was something threatening?

But she liked that she had made him laugh. She liked that he seemed to understand her need for some way to help. And that gave her confidence enough to turn her face towards his and not hide her smile.

Krys cleared his throat, a little surprised at the sudden change in her mien. "What I wanted to say, before I was distracted, was that I have to go back to Spectra tomorrow. I came in to say goodbye."

Sel wondered why he had bothered to say goodbye to her, but the thought was pushed aside as she processed his words. "Spectra?"

"Yes, Spectra. My home."

"This Spectra?" she asked, rifling through the papers at her feet until she came across the reports.

"'Spectra: The Prismatic Wonder'?"

Sel nodded.

"I guess you could call it that..."

"You live on Spectra? I thought only sprites did!"

"No. I've lived there my whole life. Though up until four years ago, I was the only non-Sprite. I lived with Orin," he clarified. "But after Spectra joined the AFW the Alliance thought it might be a good idea to have a lookout on such an important planet, so I live there with a few other members of the AFW fighting force."

"I would love to see Spectra," Sel murmured, hesitating before asking her next question. "You have to leave, then?"

"I've been here more than three months. Yes, I have to leave. What's wrong?" he asked, seeing the blonde's shocked expression.

"Has it been that long?"

The young man nodded. "It's been eight weeks since you woke up, Sel, and I was here for a little more than a month before that."

"Then...what's the date?"

"June 21."

"You're kidding!" Sel exclaimed, and then stood up a little bit taller. She said to herself, "It...can't be...nothing's happened...nothing..."

"What is it?" he asked, becoming more than slightly concerned.

"It's just that—today's my fourteenth birthday."

Krys exhaled. "Is that all? You had me thinking it was something important! Happy birthday, by the way."

"Thanks," Sel replied in an icy voice.

"Wait, Sel, I didn't mean it like that!"

"I'm sure you didn't," she answered in a monotone.

"It's just that– it worried me when you acted like that."

"I'm sure it did."

"Sel..." he protested. He didn't want to walk out on her in the middle of a fight again. Great Ones know what she might do this time! But it wasn't just that he was concerned about her health. The thought of leaving with Sel angry at him hurt him more than he would let himself admit. Then an idea struck him. "Let me make it up to you!"

"No, that's all right, thank you. I really don't mind."

"No, come on!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her out the door. "Really. You're going to love it. Go change into something presentable and meet me at the stables."

Sel grimaced at Krys's back as he ran down the hallway. What was wrong with her outfit? He just kept putting his foot in his mouth, didn't he?

She considered going into her room and locking him out. Or hiding beside the waterfall, her favorite spot. Or getting "lost" for a few hours in the Color Caves, even though she now knew them inside out.

But then...he did seem sincerely sorry. And she was grateful to him for taking care of her. Maybe Canary had been right. He didn't seem like the type to tolerate people he wasn't fond of. And he had asked her, not the other way around.

The Sel of three months ago would have hidden in fear of a prank. The old Sel would have retreated into her own mind of nightmares to avoid the world. But Sel had been through quite a lot since then. And she wasn't scared, just confused. Besides, it was her birthday. She should let loose.

Sel turned to find something "presentable" in her borrowed wardrobe.

She found Krys at the stables, where he said he would be, fifteen minutes later. He looked at her outfit and nodded. Sel was a bit peeved that that was the only reaction her clothing– the pale blue tank top she had worn on her last day on Earth and a borrowed (and slightly modified) pair of Indigo's work pants– had received. So being fourteen didn't mean Insta-Curves or a raised attraction factor. Not that she wanted either of those around Krys, but it would have been nice for a little reassurance that she wasn't a junior high thirteen-year-old anymore.

"Good. Come on, there's someone I want you to meet." She followed the red-head down the passage as he told her that he had warned Rainbow that they might not be home until late. He stopped at a stall that housed a black seemingly metal horse that she had never seen in all her time in Rainbowland.

"Sel, this is my horse, On-X. On-X, Sel."

Sel could barely contain her laughter at the fact that he introduced her to a machine like he could think and reply. To her surprise, the horse whinnied and "said," "Please to meet you."

"What do you know," Sel chirped, trying to hide her unease, "your horse is more polite than you are." To her even more surprise, Krys just smiled and climbed on, offering her a hand once he was seated.

"What, you want me to get on?"

Krys raised his eyebrows. "Well, I guess I could just tie you on with the Color Belt and drag you behind..."

"The humor is not appreciated. I've never ridden a horse before," the blonde admitted nervously.

"Don't worry. On-X can handle two riders. And I won't let you fall," he finished with a smile.

Not ready to admit defeat, Sel moved on to another topic. "Where are we going?"

"It's a birthday surprise." When she still hesitated, Krys added, "Get on or I'll leave without you."

A sudden look of resolve crossing her face, Sel took his hand and settled herself– with some difficulty– behind Krys.

"Now hold on," he said, preparing to give On-X the order to take off.

Sel placed her hands delicately on Krys's shoulders. In response, the red-head rolled his eyes in disgust. "If you hold on like that, you'll fall off in the middle of a wormhole and we'd miss it," he said, and locked Sel's arms firmly around his waist.

Sel told herself not to be embarrassed, but found herself blushing anyway. This was more contact than she'd had with a boy– ever. She couldn't help it. And the first time she essentially hugged a member of the opposite sex (excluding her father), it had to be Krys, who she wasn't even sure how she felt about, was completely unsure of herself around, and, she couldn't help but notice, had a very nicely muscled back.

The thought of what might happen if her hand accidentally strayed downward made her gasp with mortification.

"You still holding on?" Krys asked, and Sel nodded, still fully flustered.

"Good. Let's go, On-X!" he said, and the Sel felt the fully uncomfortable feeling of the ground floating away from her. Krys skillfully guided the horse through the stables and into the open air. As soon as he did, Sel regretted her newfound courage, as On-X moved into what felt like hyper speed. Forgetting any sense of boundaries and embarrassment, Sel wrapped her arms tighter around Krys's waist and pushed her entire body into his back, hiding her face in his shoulder as Rainbowland grew smaller and smaller.

"Hey, Rainbow!" Brian said as the violet-eyed girl walked into his room.

"Hello, Brian," she said with a smile.

"I just wanted to talk to you. Have you seen Sel?"

Rainbow pursed her lips in thought. "Actually, I think she and Krys went somewhere. He said not to expect them back for quite a while."

"You're kidding."

Rainbow laughed, a sound Brian could never hear enough of, especially after her breakdown in his room less than three months ago. "I'm not, hard as it is to believe."

"The last time they spoke, we could hear them yelling at each other three rooms away, and now they just— took off?"

"It seems that way."

"To where?"

"I'm not sure," Rainbow answered, and glanced out the window. "Though it looks like they're not going to be anywhere in Rainbowland."

Brian followed her gaze, and caught sight of the evidence Rainbow had of this theory. The sun glinted off a black shape, and it sped out of sight, the two figures atop it getting smaller and smaller, the second's blonde hair streaming out behind them.

Krys couldn't help but smile as Sel gasped. She had finally opened her eyes, and now, he felt her arms loosening slightly as she pulled away to get a better look at the stars, asteroids, and planets that surrounded them. "Don't let go," he warned, but apparently Sel wasn't completely over her anxiety, because she still kept a tight grip around his waist.

"Oh, Krys..." she murmured, so quiet he could barely hear her, "it's beautiful."

As if sensing her awe, On-X slowed down a bit, enabling the girl to see the wonders around them more clearly. "I told you you'd love it," Krys said, smug.

"You were right. Can we just stay here forever?"

"No. It gets better." Krys pointed to a shimmering point in the distance. "See there? That's Spectra." He gave On-X a nudge, and the horse sped up again.

"We're going to Spectra!"

"No, actually, I'm taking you to the Prison Planet and hiding you in the caves. You'll get used to the monsters eventually."

"Very funny. You know, you should be nicer to me on my birthday."

"What, and taking you out for your birthday isn't nice enough?"

Sel grinned. "I concede the point. But, aside from the fact that it's the light of the universe and culturally a symbol of self-discovery and inner knowledge, the soul, and all things magic, why are we going there?"

"Does Spectra symbolize all that?"

"Uh-huh, according to Mr. Prismatic Wonder."

Krys smirked. "Funny. I wonder how I missed that for all these years."

"You just don't read materials of intellectual merit."

"Of course I don't. Anyway, the reason we're going there is because you, Sel, are about to witness a once-in-a-lifetime event." He turned his head enough to see the confusion on her face. He grinned. "Now I've got you interested, don't I?"

Sel sighed in an exasperated fashion. "Fine. But just remember, the only reason I'm coming is for the once-in-a-lifetime event, which you had better explain right now."

The older boy turned his head forward, looking at his brilliant home as he obeyed. "Spectra is an astrological wonder. Not only does it contain the light of the universe– if you want to know more about that, ask Orin. I can't explain it as well as he can– it doesn't orbit around any star. It just seems to hang suspended in space and rotate on its own axis. So, technically, Spectra doesn't have a sun. It receives its light from a two-star system. The stars rotate around themselves, but not near enough to Spectra that we have sunrises and sunsets. We just have a constant stream of light from one of the two stars. Except," he finished dramatically, "for now.

"The stars orbit very slowly, so only once in about two hundred years does one of the stars pass very close to Spectra. Today just happens to be once in about two hundred years. We had a sunrise while I was in Rainbowland, and today we have our sunset."

"And it just happens to be on my birthday?"

"I guess so. Nice birthday present from fate, isn't it?"

Sel was quiet for the rest of the short ride, until they landed on Spectra. It was more beautiful than she could have imagined. Everything was shimmering and crystalline. And at the moment, it was all burning with the light of a small sun.

Krys dismounted and offered her his hand. She smiled and took it, sliding off On-X with substantially less trouble than she had gotten on with.

"The AFW wanted to do everything possible to keep Spectra as perfect as possible, so the headquarters are in an underground system of caves. The entrance is right over there." He pointed to a small dark space, the only blight on the endless acres of glittering ice. He led her into it, and On-X followed. After he punched a code into a small computer, a metal door slid open, and they followed a natural passage down and forward.

"Wait..how are we going to see the sunset underground?" Sel asked.

Krys kept his eyes on the passage, lit only by a few lights wired on the walls. "Watch your step. There's a pit coming up." He grabbed Sel's arm as she tripped in the foretold hole. "The sunset isn't for a few hours yet, so I thought we could go to the cafeteria, get something to eat, and see if any of my friends are there." He laughed as Sel's stomach growled and she blushed. "We did miss lunch."

"Is everywhere in the headquarters this...rough?" Sel asked.

"No. The passages are, and nothing's really heated, since Spectra doesn't have seasons. But the rooms are a bit more modern. Here it is," he finished, turning to the left as they reached an intersection.

"Where do all these tunnels go?"

"This one leads to the 'official' areas, the training rooms, the armory, and the like. And the cafeteria. The right leads to the men's dorms, the center to the women's. There are a lot fewer rooms in the center."

"How many people are here?"

"Only about twenty. We're not a very important planet. We're too far away from Riison, the AFW capital planet, to have a lot of people, or nice facilities. There are...let me think..." Krys frowned as he counted on his hand. "Three women, and they all share a room, fifteen men, and two officers. Their rooms are off of the official rooms." He turned to the left again, and to the right a few minutes later.

Sel could never keep track of all this. Krys told her when she asked that the tunnels were full of dead ends, intersecting passages, and the occasional large and dangerous crevasse. But those were all in the tunnels no one used, he said, which reassured Sel just so much.

"You get used to it," the boy told her in response to the astounded expression she wore. "It was easier for me, since I've been exploring these tunnels as long as I've lived her. I actually lived in them when the Princess took over and captured Orin."

Sel was about to pursue the topic as they suddenly reached a large open space, equipped with tables and a kitchen off to one side. A few young people were milling around, one of whom was cursing as he tried to heat something on the stove.

"I told you we didn't have very good facilities," Krys told her with a smile. "All of the support workers for the army– cooks, doctors, clerics– we don't have them. We operate this place on our own. We get supplies every so often, but mostly we make do with what we get for ourselves." He looked like he was about to continue, when he was suddenly hit by a small explosion with pink hair and light blue skin.

"Krys!" she yelled, tackling him to the ground. "Where have you BEEN! You were supposed to be gone for two weeks! Did you think we said twelve! What in the world could be important enough to keep you away for two and a half months? Ohhhh," she said knowingly, looking at Sel, who stood fearfully a few feet away.

Krys stood up and coughed hard. "Nice welcome, Issana. Nearly kill me in forty-five seconds. I think it's a new record." He shook his head. "Sel, this is my friend Issana. A captain. Issana, Sel."

"Wow, Krys," Issana whispered, awed. "I knew Spectrans got hitched early, but, man–"

"Oh, nononono!" Sel interjected. "He's just making up for insulting me multiple times."

"Half the time I don't even know I'm insulting you!" Krys protested.

"You would if you stopped sticking your foot in your mouth,"retorted Sel.

During their exchange, a few other of the fighters had wandered over. Two girls and a young man, Sel noticed. One of the girls had straight black hair hiding half her face, and the other was a brunette with a nice smile. The other was tall, with straight brown hair hanging across his forehead and into his very blue eyes. He gave Sel a shy smile as Issana bombarded Krys with questions.

"Krys, you apparently have no manners," the brunette interrupted. "We've been listening to you chatter for a good two minutes and we still don't know your friend's name."

Krys grimaced. "Right. Sel, this is Rilla–" the brunette waved– "Sestina–" the black-haired girl nodded– "and Barder." The boy reached out to shake Sel's hand. He had a firm grip, but not too hard, and looked into her eyes, smiling, as he pumped her hand once. "Everyone, this is Sel. She's staying in Rainbowland. And can we continue this conversation with some food, Issana?"

The bubbly girl smiled. "Of course. I'll help you get it."

Rilla took Sel's hand. "Come sit down. They can handle the food." She led Sel over to a rectangular table in the corner and sat down in a middle seat on one side. Sel sat beside her, and Sestina took the opposite corner from Sel. Barder sat across from Sel and smiled again, pushing his bangs out of his eyes.

"So, Sel," Rilla asked once they were settled, "how do you know Krys?"

OK. You've been handed a grenade. You can hold it or throw it away. Careful, careful now... "Um... Krys helped me out when I was in trouble."

"Oh, really?" Barder asked. "How?"

"Um..." Sel stalled, trying not to feel like she was being interrogated. She didn't know much about Krys or Rainbow, but she assumed that her story about being magically transported to Rainbowland and being unable to return home as a result of Rainbow's failing powers would not be appreciated by either of them.

"I saved her life," Krys said in a lofty tone, carrying a tray. He took the seat next to Barder, and Issana took the last open chair, on Rilla's other side. As she sat, she handed Sel a tray with a plate, a small covered bowl, and a glass of water.

"Oh, I'm sure, Mr. Hero!" Rilla exclaimed sarcastically.

Krys grinned. "Fine. Don't believe me.. He looked at Sel out of the corner of his eye and gave her a slight smirk. She stuck her tongue out at the back of his head as he turned to Sestina and asked her something about her family. No one seemed to notice the quick topic change.

As their talk moved to inside jokes and conversations about people she didn't know, Sel quietly ate her food. It consisted of some sort of meat (I hope it isn't sauteed sprite, she thought, recalling Krys's comment about using what they could get), a vegetable, and a piece of bread that almost reminded Sel of a pita. Only the covered dish remained. She peeled it off to discover a bright blue– what appeared to be a slushy, of all things. She raised a spoonful of the unoffensive mush to her mouth, swallowing it as she started to vaguely listen to the conversation.

All conversation stopped as she coughed loudly and banged her chest. She was dying; that was the only thing to explain the fire burning in her mouth and throat.

"Oh, you tried the Spectran Slush, didn't you? It's such a delicacy around here, though it does take some getting used to," Issana told her with false pity and an evil grin.

"Issana...you didn't..." Krys started, glaring at the girl.

Seeing the hidden smirks on the faces of all three of the girls and the frown on Krys's, Sel put two and two together. She was sick of being pushed around, and made a decision to fight fire with fire for the first time in her life.

"Actually, Issana, I like it. The taste is so unexpected." Everyone's attention turned back to Sel as she took another bite; Krys had been about to speak, but stopped to watch her reaction. Resisting the urge to choke, Sel took another bite, and another, swallowing every last bit of the spicy concoction. As soon as she finished, she lifted her water and took as small a sip as her mouth could handle. She wiped the tears from her eyes, to be greeted with awestruck expressions from every member of the table.

"Delicious," she said, and her traitor mouth added, "Krys, could I have yours?"

Sestina spoke for the first time. "You weren't supposed to eat all that." Her voice was surprised. "Not even Rilla can eat that much of it."

Sel smiled. "Obviously, you people have never eaten Thai."

Issana grinned, a real grin. "Sorry about that, miduc."

Krys rolled his eyes. "Don't call her names in Harshan, Issana. And that was a mean prank."

"She didn't call her a name, she called her spunky," Sestina said defensively.

"I'm not sure if that's a compliment," Sel muttered, but no one noticed.

"Whatever you say. Now, about the new senator from Ilene, I never caught his stance on treatment of the Princess's supporters..."

"Screw em, of course, he's from Ilene, they were hit the worst by the collapse of the UUG..."

As the conversation again turned to topics Sel had never heard of, she resigned herself again to silently studying her plate, but to her surprise, Barder quietly said, "I'm sorry Issana did that. She didn't mean anything by it. She just likes to pull pranks."

Sel smiled, glad to have someone to talk to. "It's fine, really. I've had worse pulled on me."

"There are worse things than eating Spectran Slush, I guess," he said, and his tone dropped to a confidential whisper. "When I first got here, my roommate– including Barrel-of-Laughs over there–" he nodded towards Krys– "stole all of my right shoes and hid them in the colonel's office. Not only that, they stole my underwear and threw it all over the training room." Barder rolled his eyes. "Real mature, huh?"

Sel laughed. "Did they get in trouble?"

Barder pouted. "That's the worst part. I did. The colonel thought I was being a jokester by throwing my things all over, so he gave me three months of bathroom duty. I literally started off here on the wrong foot."

The more she and Barder talked, the more Sel liked talking to him. He was funny and kind, and not nearly as full of himself as Krys was. Pretty eyes, too. She was almost sorry when Krys stood up and announced they had to go. Issana moaned and grabbed his arm, asking when he'd be back.

"Tomorrow afternoon, at the latest. I'll see all of you then," Krys replied, and started to the door. Sel stood to follow.

"Excuse me; it's been nice to meet you all." To her surprise, Barder caught her hand.

"Sel," he asked quietly, somehow managing to avoid the girls' attention, "will we get to see you again?" He squeezed her hand, and Sel knew he really meant, "Will I get to see you again?"

She smiled. "I'm sure you will. Thank you, Barder," she replied, and ran to catch up with Krys.

"Come on! It's only a little farther!"

"Ugh," Sel moaned. It seemed like they had been climbing the crystalline hill forever. And the burning light from the star didn't help.

"Believe me, it's worth it. You're going to love it!" Krys turned and grabbed Sel's hand to pull her up.

"You've been saying that all day, and more and more I get the feeling that you're lying."

"You won't know unless you get to the top. One more step...and...there," Krys finished as he and Sel reached the top.

Sel turned to look back at the massive hill they had just climbed. Not so much a hill, really, but a huge pile of crystal that had over time condensed into a harder-than-diamond mass. Still, it was a big accomplishment for her, never the most in-shape, to get to the top with minimal assistance.

"All right," she admitted mournfully. "You were right. It was worth it."

Krys raised his eyebrows in an annoying way. "Just you wait." He sat down, and Sel sat carefully beside him.

"So...are you glad to be coming back?" Sel asked.

He shrugged. "I guess so. But Spectra...I love it, but it's just not the same. I've gotten used to seeing Rainbow and the Kids all the time, talking to them...and you have to admit, Spectra's beautiful, but it's not as colorful." He smiled.

"No, it's not," Sel said. "But it's still nice here. Your friends here are...interesting."

Krys laughed, and then said, "Listen, don't be mad at Issana, OK? She just likes to mess with people." He looked at the horizon as he asked, "Have you had a good time today?"

The blonde grinned. "Yes."

"Have I made up for insulting you?"

"Many times over. Thank you for showing me all this today. I had a better time than I've had in a long time."

"I'm glad you did."

"Someday," Sel said, searching the sky for her home, "I'm going to repay you by taking you to Earth and showing you everything there that made my life worth living."

Krys laughed again. Sel was glad she could make him laugh. It was the least she could do to repay him, for now.

It was quiet for a minute, as they both pondered their own thoughts. The Krys asked, "Was it really that bad there?"

Sel took a deep breath as she considered how to answer that. "It was...hard." Her mind flew through every memory, every cruel comment, and every uncertainty that hd kept her grounded in her life. "I guess not. It wasn't so much that people were mean, I mean, they were, but that wasn't the hard part. The hard thing was that– I was never really sure where I belonged. I always had this feeling that I wasn't like everyone else. Is that horribly narcissistic?"

He shrugged. "A little. Not really. I know what you're talking about. Like you don't fit in, right?"

She nodded. "Yes. I was always the one who, I dunno, stood in the background, I guess. I never had many friends. I think part of it..." she hesitated. She had never revealed this to anyone. Not her mother, not Lila, certainly not Brian. "I think part of it was that I don't trust people very well." She traced a circle on her palm, carefully examining its lines. "I mean, if my own parents abandoned me, how can I trust people I don't even have any ties to?"

"Your parents...left you?"

"I never knew them. My mom and dad found me on the doorstep when I was six months old. I guess that if you don't know what you're missing, you can't miss it, but still–" her voice cracked– "was I not good enough? Didn't they love me? Did they care enough to at least explain why?" She could feel the tears rushing to her face, and tried desperately to restrain them. This always happened after an emotional high. Any little thing would set her off.

Sel didn't notice Krys's silence until he spoke. "My parents died in an accident when I was two. I've lived with Orin since then. They left me with him for a few days, but they didn't come back." He paused. "I've never told anyone about this before. I don't know why I'm telling you."

Sel reached for his hand, and found it searching for her own. Empathy was better than sympathy, she knew. And she had a suspicion that the reason they were both telling each other so much was because they both had found someone who could understand. Children who went home to their own parents, who never wrestled with doubt or regret about them, couldn't comprehend the loneliness of growing up without a mother and a father that were yours, completely, and loved you.

They sat in sad, companionable silence until Krys spoke. "You said you didn't have many friends. I didn't, either. I had Orin, but he was always more of a grandfather type. And the other sprites were nice, but they weren't close, I guess." Sel could see him biting his lip. "Sel..."

"Uh-huh?"

"I...what I want to say is that...well...I'll be your friend."

Words couldn't explain the elation she felt at that moment, and the tears started coming all over again. "And I'll be yours, Krys."

He turned his head, about to say something else, when a light on the horizon caught Sel's eye. "Oh, look!"

The last rays of the star had caught the gems of the prismatic wonder. Everywhere around them, on them, under them, rainbows glittered through the stone, shining and playing off their surroundings. Then, the star sank beneath the horizon, and the sky was lit with pink, red, orange, yellow, blue, and violet, and the colors were reflected in the very ground.

Sel turned to Krys, wonder filling her features, and gasped. He had turned his face towards her, and everything about him was...magical. Every color was reflected in his amazed grey eyes, and his hair caught the burnished and orange tones in the sky. The rainbows had cast an opalescent look over his skin; even his clothes reflected the sunset, and the prism on his right wrist created rainbows across his legs.

Krys was about to tell Sel that he was glad she was here to share this with him, but stopped when he saw her. Her blonde tresses picked up the pink hue of the sky in every curl, making them resemble rosy gold. The skin of her face was the pink-peach color in between the opposite ends of violet and red. Her eyes, lit to a brilliant green, contrasted perfectly with every other color that surrounded them, and her pupils reflected the newest stars. Even her lips seemed a deeper red.

And in that moment, both of them saw for just an instant that something in the person sitting next to them was not what it seemed to be.

And, suddenly, it was gone. The sky had turned a deep indigo. The stars had come out in all their brilliance. Planets, far and near, were visible by their brightness. It was beautiful, but the magic had vanished with the shining star.

"How long will the night last?" Sel asked quietly.

"Not long. A few hours."

"Will you have another sunrise?"

"The other side of Spectra will. Not like this. I probably won't see it."

"Too bad."

"No," Krys said, surprising her. "I don't know how I could see this again without you here."

Sel looked at him closely, and smiled. She stood and offered him her hand. "Should we go home, then?"

"Let's go find On-X."

Everyone in Rainbowland was asleep when they entered the castle, but the aurora shined brightly above them. "Probably after-effects from Spectra," Krys hypothesized.

"Pretty, but I'm glad I got to see the real thing," Sel answered.

They reached the entryway of the castle. Sel turned to find her room on the second floor, and Krys moved toward the left passageway.

"Well," he said.

"Well," she replied with yet another smile. So many smiles today! she thought. "Thank you, Krys. I had a great time."

"So did I."

"Will you wake me up before you leave tomorrow?"

"Of course, Sel."

"Good," Sel said through a yawn. "I guess that's the sign to go to sleep. Goodnight, Krys."

Krys kissed her forehead, like a friend would. "Goodnight, birthday girl."

And as Sel fell asleep that night, her plea was different. Please, no nightmares, she thought. Instead, let me dream about today. And she fell into a quiet sleep.

Author's Note: Whew! Hey y'all, I'm back with a bang! Man, it's good to finally get that chapter out. If any of you are interested, I'd like to apologize for being gone so long, and explain why. My reasons aren't good excuses, but they help a little. To simplify it, I've had a rough two years. Writing about it is still hard. I'm sorry for the long, long, long delay. But now school's out, and I have time to write again. I wouldn't expect rattle-off three a week chapters, but they will come more often than every two years ;-). So, thanks for your patience, review if you liked it!

Story Note: OK, now we're into the flesh and blood of the story. Now it gets down and dirty. Anyway, Krys and Sel: Sudden change, yes? Why, you ask? Originally, this chapter was going to take about five, and the only thing happening would be the gradual change in their relationship. I prefer this way. And besides, since when is Krys ever subtle about anything? And Sel has been though a lot. She's gonna go through more. It's gonna change her. She's not as cautious, but she's less bitter. I like the change, personally. For the first couple chapters, I kept thinking that this wasn't the Sel I wanted. Maybe eventually she come out on computer screen the way she is in my head.

Disclaimer: Just occurred to me that I haven't done one of these. Everything but Sel, Barder, Issana, Sestina, Rilla, and the plot belong to Hallmark, the lazy bums who won't start up Rainbow Brite again, so I have to write crappy fanfics to entertain myself. Why? Because I'm an even lazier bum and don't want to come up with my own setting and characters. Oh, and also, the Spectran Slush concept belongs totally and completely to heartnut. If you want more on the subject, read "Late Night Sherbert," which is a great little ficcy, very touching and very funny.

Later, peeps!


	5. Insight

The next morning, after seeing Krys off with Rainbow and the others, Sel returned to the library to finish sorting. She couldn't stop smiling. She had even laughed at one of Brian's dumb jokes at breakfast. She was midway through a pile of books on the history of the universe when she suddenly stood up and did a cartwheel. Sel hadn't felt this happy for so long. She had friends. She had something to do, something she actually enjoyed. She was in a beautiful place that no nightmares could ever mar. She was sad her parents weren't here with her, and the dreams from her fever still bothered her some, but still!

She was in the middle of her happy dance when someone said, "Are you available or am I interrupting?"

"Does that doorway make people think of witty remarks?" she asked, and flung herself at Brian. She wrapped her arms around the surprised boy's neck, and when he caught her, she completely lifted herself off the ground. The result was a large heap of limbs on the floor in the hallway.

Brian gave the blonde a long look. "You know, I've never seen you act like this, and I'm not entirely sure I like it."

"What's not to like?"

"The fact that a large ache in my back was caused by your hyper lallygagging."

"I am not lallygagging! I'm working."

"Really? I missed the ceremony when Rainbow appointed you Official Dance Mistress of Rainbowland. Dang, that must have been one heck of a party!"

"Why are you here, Brian? Or do you need a reason to annoy me and keep me from getting anything done?" Sel put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

Brian shrugged innocently, a knowing smirk playing across his lips. "Just wanted to have a friendly chat. About anything. How this is coming along, if Red's being nice to you, where you went with Krys yesterday–"

"Are you worried about me?" Sel said in a simpering tone as she turned to a stack of books. "How sweet."

Brian rolled his eyes. "I'm not worried, Sel. I'm just curious."

Sel couldn't help but laugh. "If I didn't know you were head-over-heals in love with a certain Wearer of the Color Belt, I'd say you were jealo–"

"Don't say that so loud!" Brian looked around nervously. "Someone might hear you!"

"No one's going to hear me, and before you ask, no, I would never tell, and no, it's not that obvious. But apparently getting hit by a car with someone gives you a link with them or something. Either that or I just know you too well." She returned to sorting the reports on Spectra that she'd left unfinished lately.

The boy shook his head. "I thought I was doing really well at hiding it..."

"You were. But I've always noticed things like that about people, Brian. I catch things other people miss." She pointed a sheaf of papers at him. "But you might want to stop staring at her with that 'I'll-follow-you-wherever-you-go' puppy face. That's kind of hard to miss."

She cocked an eyebrow at Brian. "Now, Brian, are you going to sit down or stand in the hallway for the rest of the morning?"

"You never told me about yesterday," Brian said, taking a seat on a larger stack.

"Not that one. The books on top are a little fragile. Try the one next to it," Sel commented. "Oh, no, wait, that's got the Treatise on the Powers of the Prism in it, try another– no, The Book of the Universe is at the bottom of that one, I'm trying to press it back into shape--" Five minutes later, Brian finally found a seat on the floor.

"I should've tried this from the start," he muttered as Sel obsessively straightened a pile he had knocked crooked. "Anyway," he continued, loud enough for Sel to hear him, "yesterday."

"Oh, right. He managed to offend me again when he was trying to say goodbye, so he made it up to me by taking me to meet his friends on Spectra." Brian could tell she was already preoccupied with her books again.

"Spectra, huh? Not bad for a first date," he teased, trying to get her attention back. It worked.

"It wasn't a date, Brian!" Sel exclaimed. "We went for a ride! We ate Spectran Slush! We watched the sunset, we came home! That's all!"

"Spectra doesn't have sunsets, you liar!" Brian laughed. "Come on, what did you really do?"

"It does too, once every two hundred years. You see, there's this double star system, and it rotates close enough to catch the– oh, it's complicated, don't make me explain it!" she finished quickly.

"I think you might just like him, Sel–" Brain teased. Sel looked shocked.

"Uh-uh! Why does everyone here have their minds on romance! First Issana, now you–"

"First who?"

"Issana. One of Krys's friends. She thought Krys had been gone so long because he married me!" Sel laughed. "How insane is that?"

Brian snorted, leaning back on his arms. "Considering the way he's been treating you, it's an easy mistake to make."

Sel kept her face towards her books, but moved her eyes to examine Brian's reclining form through a blonde haze. "What in the name of everything holy are you talking about? He's just being nice to me."

"Exactly what I'm talking about." Studying the confused look on Sel's face, Brian said, "No one's ever told you about Krys, have they?"

"What about him? He's a little testy, but I am too some days. So is everyone!" Sel didn't note how defensive she had become, but Brian did, and stored that trinket of information away to consider on another day.

Brian sighed, blowing his bangs up. "Sel, this may take a while. Get comfy." As the blonde settled herself, Brian began. "Here we go. So, Krys was raised by Orin. Don't know why that is, but he only had the Sprites for company growing up." Sel didn't comment. Apparently she knew more than Brian on this particular topic. "He grew up studying and learning to fight, and all that came in handy when the Princess tried to take over Spectra four years ago."

"The Princess captured Orin, and Krys lived on Spectra, running away from her patrols until Rainbow showed up– Orin had sent On-X to Rainbowland with a message for her. Not only was he mean to her because he didn't think a girl could be any help–"

"Somehow, Brian, that doesn't surprise me."

"–he also disregarded her advice and tried to shelter her," he continued, ignoring Sel. "Long story short, they stopped the Princess, Krys was given the Prism, and Rainbow became the only person in the universe Krys has any respect for."

Sel smirked. "Methinks someone's a little bitter." Her visage became serious. "But what's this about the Prism? I haven't heard of it."

"The Prism is a weapon that only works when Rainbow's nearby. It can freeze things or break them into smaller pieces. Pretty powerful. Giving it to Krys was a big mistake, if you ask me."

"So that's what's on his wrist...What about all of the AFW business? What's that?"

"The Alliance of Free Worlds. After the Princess was beaten, the worlds that she had ruled banded together and formed a common government and army. Krys joined when he was...thirteen?—something like that, and became the youngest lieutenant in the history of the AFW– which is not that big an accomplishment, since its been in existence for about three years."

Sel shrugged. "All well and good, Brian, but what's this got to do with anything?"

"Sel...Krys is...he's a little...he's not the easiest to get along with," he finally finished. Sel rolled her eyes.

"Is that all? I figured that out on my own!"

"All right. I'll just say it. He doesn't get along with many people, he's overbearing, arrogant, and ambitious. He think's I'm a weakling for not being able to protect Rainbow. It's not like she even needs protecting! And that's what he thinks most girls need, Sel. Protecting."

"None of that's so bad. I mean, the sexism thing is, but he'll have to get over that eventually. He might just need a little help along the way. And besides," she added sadly, "it might be nice having someone care enough to protect me." The wistful look on her face told Brian as much as if he had read her thoughts.

"You've been lonely here." It was a statement, not a question.

"Sometimes. But you see, Brian," Sel smiled, a little sadly, "I have more than I ever had on earth. I have you. I have Rainbow. I have Stormy and Moonglo, and now Krys. It seems like nothing should be missing." She sighed. "I don't know what more I could need, but..."

"But what's missing, Sel?"

Sel turned back to her books, determined to, this time, get something done. "I'll let you know when I find out."

After Brian left, Sel turned her attention to yet another stack of books. She had been waiting on this group, and thought it was best to do it while she was distracted. The titles alone scared her: "The Darkness to Come;" "When Evil Rules;" "Magic, Mystery, and Murder." To make matters worse, one particularly fragile book appeared to be coated in blood. The reason these books were in Rainbowland she couldn't fathom, except perhaps they were here to keep them from falling into the wrong hands.

Sel, brooding over her discussion with Brian, didn't think about the contents of the books she held as she transported them to their predestined home, a half-hidden shelf in the corner she had chosen particularly for that reason. When she would look back on this moment, she gave her distraction credit for all that was to follow, and both cursed and blessed it.

If she hadn't been preoccupied, she never would have tripped over "Fanciful Flights of Fortune;" the books never would have spilled from her arms as she sprawled on the rug; "The History of Sorcery and its Truths" never would have landed, open, by her head; and she never would have looked onto its open page, and seen herself.

On the thin, yellowing page was her face, her hair in a blonde cloud surrounding her, her necklace glinting in the light, a sad, wise, and yet joyful look in her green eyes. Sel sat up, not minding that she had wretched her ankle, completely speechless.

No, she realized, it wasn't her portrait in the book. The nose was longer and didn't turn up at the end. The woman's eyes were a pure, perfect green, not flecked with brown and yellow, as Sel's were. And she was older, maybe twenty. The woman's hair, softly shimmering, was not as wild as her own, and her necklace fell onto a rounder chest than Sel's; her skin was flawless, as Sel's had never been.

But the necklace was her own. She recognized it instantly, the scratch on the left point, the slightly inconsistent quality of the silver. Sel traced it with her finger, and noticed another difference between herself and the lady in the book: her vermilion dress was cut far lower than Sel had ever dared to wear, and there was no birthmark on her left side.

And yet, the resemblance was too close for chance. Shaking off her shock, Sel read the caption under the picture: "Princess Melayel of Spectra."

"_You are the daughter of Melayel, and a sorceress of the line of Amira."_

The truth hit Sel instantly. "This is my mother," she whispered. Her hands trembled as she picked up the book. The portrait was one of several colored illustrations in the middle of the book. She completely forgot about the library, about the dropped books, about Krys and Brian, about everything. She sat down in one of the overstuffed chairs, flipped to the first page, and began to read.

-----

Krys was exhausted. He had arrived at Spectra later than he thought he would, but that tended to happen when one stopped on a deserted asteroid for five hours for no particular reason. After he had finally found his way to the commander, he had been berated for his lateness, for the first time not caring about being chastised, and asked for his report. Report? What kind of report was he supposed to give? That random earthlings were popping into Rainbowland and completely messing with his head? That Rainbow looked better, but that he still hadn't wanted to leave her? That he had lost his carefully fostered aloof reputation because of a certain blonde's loneliness (not to mention his own)?

Needless to say, his report was rather unsatisfactory, causing Commander Griffith to spend three hours asking yes or no questions to get information that he normally would have had in three minutes.

By the time Krys got to his room, it was nearly midnight. He dropped his bag by the door and flopped onto his bed with a sigh of relief, grateful for some well- earned rest, and hoped that he would be able to have just one dream without Sel's face in it.

"Krys? That you?"

The young man in question stifled a groan. Barder was a heavy sleeper, an early-to-bed type. He had been certain his roommate would be asleep by now.

"Barder, you're going to wake up Garet!" Krys whispered, gesturing towards the bed of their other roommate.

"He's in the infirmary, he ate some bad hissweed. Why are you back so late?"

"I...there...it's a long story," Krys stuttered, completely aware of the fact that he hadn't slept (well, at least) in nearly three days. "And what are you doing up? Usually you'd be snoring three hours ago! Why in the– Barder, were you waiting up for me?"

He could hear embarrassment in his friend's voice as Barder replied, "I wanted to talk to you."

"We could talk in the morning," he suggested hopefully.

"Or we could talk now."

"Or in the morning."

"But we could also talk now."

"Yes, we could." Krys covered his face with his hands. Obviously, this was going to be a circular argument, one that he would lose. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I don't know. What do you want to talk about?" Barder asked cheerfully.

"Barder, no way!" Krys sat up and glared at his friend across the room. "You can't bloody wait up until midnight for me and coerce me into talking with you when any sane person is asleep only to act like you don't have something to talk about!" He took a deep breath. "Now, what would you like to talk about?"

Undaunted, Barder asked, "How was your time in Rainbowland?"

Realizing there was no reasoning with him, Krys surrendered his offensive and his dreams of a nice, long sleep. "Fine."

"How's Rainbow Brite?"

"Good."

"And the Color Kids?"

"All right."

"The sprites?"

"Excellent."

"The Color Caves are doing good?"

"Thriving."

"And what's her name, Stormy?"

"Well-rested."

"The other two?"

"Top kilter."

"The horses are well?"

"In the peak of health."

"And that friend of yours, was her name Sel?"

And there it is, Krys thought. "She's doing well."

"She seems nice."

"Uh-huh."

"And pretty."

"I agree." Krys wondered if Barder would notice if he covered his head with his pillow and went to sleep.

"Smart."

"I'm in complete concordance."

"Interesting."

"Very much so."

"Funny."

"Yes."

"Sexy."

"I concur– WHAT!" Krys sat straight up to see Barder grinning at him in a satisfied way.

"I see I have your attention."

"I see you're being a jackass! What are you getting at! Did you mean that, or were you just trying to get to me?"

"A little of both." Barder shrugged, very aware that the holder upper hand in the conversation had reversed.

"You can't mean– you're not–" Krys collapsed onto his pillow. "_Sel?_ You can't be serious, Barder."

"Maybe I am. Something wrong with that?"

"No...it's just that...Sel's a little...she's kind of...atypical," he finished, cringing at his weak excuse.

"So? She's great. I had an excellent time with her yesterday while you let Issana fawn all over you. By the way, I must say, your good manners really shine through around her. Completely ignoring your guest in favor of letting Issana sit in your lap, very chivalrous."

"Chivalry's dead, and Issana wasn't in my lap!" A sudden thought came into Krys's head, which he played with a winner's smile. "Besides, Sel's too young for you."

"No, she's not."

"She just turned fourteen yesterday."

"You're kidding! She's pretty mature for her age."

"Doesn't change the fact that you're almost seventeen."

"Not for another four months! That's not almost! And besides, what do you care? Why does it matter to you if Sel goes out with someone who's 'too old for her'?"

"Wait, we're talking dating now! It's against the rules!"

Barder rolled his eyes. "You know that no one even considers that rule. Issana's just turned seventeen, and she's had dozens of boyfriends."

"And the last time she got caught, there was hell to pay!"

"What does it matter? I'm just thinking about it. I might not even tell her. And you never answered my question."

Krys paused. This was the question he had pondered for five hours on a deserted asteroid today. And, slowly, he revealed the conclusion that he had arrived at after three hundred minutes of deliberation. "I guess I'm protective of her because I feel like, when I first met her, I hurt her pretty badly when she needed a friend. The consequences were bad. And she understands things no one I've ever talked to could understand before. I think of her like a sister," he exaggerated, not mentioning that he had completely avoided her until yesterday, "which is why the thought of you going out with her bothers me."

Barder looked dubious, but he just yawned and said, "You know, it's really late, we should get some sleep," and grinned as Krys gaped at him. "Good night, Krys," he said as he rolled towards the wall. "And just for the record," he whispered so Krys wouldn't hear, "most societies frown on being crazy for your sister."

-----

Sel sat in her room, staring out her window. She watched as Buddy Blue and Patty O'Green played a game of soccer with several sprites; as Stormy summoned a small cloud to help Lala clean the roof of a house; as Brian and Rainbow sat at the edge of the river with Puppy Brite, laughing and splashing each other. They were all so happy, so ignorant of the truths that now circled Sel like vultures circled a battlefield.

A whirlwind of thoughts filled her, contrasting emotions ebbing and flooding along a ragged tide. So, this was what she was. Not who, _what_. The daughter of the source of all evil and an unwilling sorceress, the niece of a cold queen, the half-sister of the Princess everyone so feared. She gave a small hiccup of grief. She couldn't cry; crying wouldn't even start to cover her despair.

The book had told her, if not everything, almost everything. How the Great Ones's children divided protection of the Universe; how Amira's two daughters had been given power over numerous worlds. How her mother, Melayel, had been the Windspeaker, hearing truth, past, present, and future on the winds, a sorceress of great power, like her mother, Amira Heartspeaker. How Melayel had taken control of Spectra as its beloved princess, advised and adored by her trusted councillors and friends, Opaela, Rowan, Belias, and Orin.

How her jealous sister had sought to gain power through a union with the Evil One, the Dark Lord, the Shadow, and received only a daughter and bitterness. How the Evil One had then turned his sights toward Melayel. How she had disappeared for a year, and how her body had been dredged up from a sea on the Throne World. How they had mourned the loss of her power in the universe. How the universe had seen no great sorceresses of Light and no Speakers since her death.

But that hadn't been enough. Another book told her how her father had tried to destroy color, and the atrocities he committed. Another, how her half-sister tried to conquer Spectra, believing it her birthright, as its princess's niece. Another, how the balance of light and dark had never recovered from the Dark Lord's takeover and the loss of Melayel.

A week without leaving her room and the library, dozens of books devoured during nights without sleep, and Sel had more questions than answers. If Melayel was so powerful, why hadn't she fought off the Dark Lord instead of submitting to him? Why did none of the books mention the necklace? Why was she, Sel, never spoken of? What had become of her mother's body? And, more burning than all the rest, _why was she still alive?_

At least she knew a few things. Her mother had left her because she was dead. Her birthmark felt evil because it _was _evil. Her nightmares were memories of, she was sure, her mother's death and the first hours of her life. And Dreamspeaker...

Truth came to her in dreams.

Sel glanced up as a thought hit her. Why hadn't it come to her before? If what she dreamed was truth, then, she could find the answers to her questions. Of course.

A burning sensation came into her throat. "But..."

_But what?_ another voice asked.

"I'll have to face my nightmares."

_It had to come sometime. You have to be brave. You don't know what you are, but you can find out. Something– you don't know what– depends on it._

Sel bit her lip in apprehension. How could she?...

Yet a third voice snapped her out of her uncertainty. _Come on, Sel!_ A chorus of her new friends' voices felt like an intangible smirk. _Are you going to wuss out just when it's going to get interesting?_

"No, I'm not," she answered out loud, with considerably more resolve than she felt. And with that, she laid down on her bed and willed herself to sleep.

-----

As harsh as her nightmares could be, they were worse when Sel lucidly recognized each of them. A black shadow strangled her, choking both her breath and will to live; a woman laughed cruelly as she ran from a green monster with a blank stare and desperate scream; goblins, for lack of a better word, dragged her into darkness. She fell to the ground, sobbing, believing that she could envision nothing worse.

But then, the black shadow returned. It laughed in her face, the high laugh she recognized from every nightmare she'd had since she could remember, and gestured to the bloody bodies of her parents, Rainbow, Brian, Krys, Stormy, and all the other friends she'd had in her life. A cruel wind blew her hair around her face, and she hugged her shoulders, clawing at her skin. A hand wrapped around her throat, and Sel gasped. She looked up into a woman's face; she had seen this woman in earlier dreams as well. Her red hair was as frizzy and wild as Sel's, but her blue eyes were hard in a way Sel's had never been. Her slim body seemed to pour every ounce of its strength into her pain and feed off it.

"Look upon this face, and remember it," the shadow whispered hoarsely. "This face will be the last you see before your death."

Her death. So this was how she would die. Alone, defeated without even putting up a fight, with illusions as her assassins...

_Illusions. They're just illusions._ The thought gave her strength. She wrapped her arms around the woman's hand. _Illusions. Illusions_. She forced the hand away from her throat, and took a deep, painful breath through her bruised airway.

"You're illusions," she whispered. "You're just...illusions. You aren't real."

The woman's face turned into an ugly mask of hate. "I'm real enough to destroy you!" Her voice was rich and deep. It might have been a sweet voice, had it not been so twisted by rage.

"No. You're only real if I let you be. And I say you're not real!" She forced her exhausted body to stand. "Leave. Leave me, and never return. You can only be in my dreams if I allow it, and I no longer do. Get away from here. Leave." And gathering sudden strength that Sel didn't know she had, she yelled, "I command it!"

The world spun, and she was left in gray nothingness.

She only allowed herself a moment of relief. That had not been what she had come for. Then, she called for the only being that could answer her.

"Melayel!" She yelled. "Melayel Windspeaker!"

Nothing answered.

"Melayel Windspeaker!" She should have been answered by now. This wasn't right. And then, she cried, "Mother!"

A golden light appeared in front of her. "What is it you wish, my daughter?"

"I need answers."

"As you ask, I will answer." As Sel opened her mouth to speak, Melayel held up a hand to stop her. "Let me warn you: Our time is short, and the past no longer matters. Ask what you need to know for the future."

Sel paused as half the questions she had planned to ask disappeared. "Fine. Who am I?"

"You are Melglirael Dreamspeaker, the only daughter of Melayel Windspeaker, and the second daughter of the Dark Lord. You are a sorceress, a descendant of Amira Heartspeaker and her mother, one of the Great Ones."

"You told me the universe is in danger. Why?"

The light gave the appearance of shaking its head. "That I do not know. The threat may come from a force unknown, or the Princess Xaliel daughter of my sister Theirael, the Dark Lord himself, or you."

_"Me?"_ Sel breathed, unable to contain her fear.

"Perhaps." She felt that if the light, all that was left of her mother, was staring straight into her soul, and yet it could not warm her. "If you are untrained, or you turn away from light and color."

Sel swore to herself at that moment that she would never be anything that anyone in the universe would fear as evil– her family could handle that on their own. "How can I prevent this?"

"Teach yourself. There are no sorceresses left to teach you, aside from the usurper Xaliel, but there are books that you may learn from, in the library, as you have discovered, and in the possession of the sprite Orin. And as to the other..." She paused. "Do not let bitterness and hatred enslave your heart. Do not try to bear this burden alone. And do not forget the joy that comes from living. If you do these three things, life, light, and color will always be your allies."

"What about the necklace? What is it?"

"A powerful protection passed down from the Great Ones themselves. It protects you from magic cast on you, focuses your power, and can hold other spells, of protection, truth, or hope. It is a source of great power in itself. If it were to fall in the wrong hands, it could be the destruction of all things good. It is in your care; be wary of those that would take it from you."

The focus of the light turned, as if it had heard something in the distance. "You must go. It is not safe here."

"How? How do I get out of here?" Sel could feel panic rising in her throat.

"Will yourself to wake. Find your power, and call on it to take you back to your body."

Sel turned, but looked back. "Mother?"

"You must go."

"Yes, but...who can tell me the things about you that I want to know?"

"Orin, or the nurse who took you to earth. But now, you must go!"

On the verge of asking how to find them, Sel stopped herself. She could see a dark cloud in the distance.

"Melglirael, go with the love of your mother and the blessing of the Great Ones."

Sel nodded and closed her eyes. She felt inside herself for the source of so much of her strength, and found a ball of light. Gently, carefully, she tugged it around herself in a shining cocoon despite its reluctance. It was slow, and slower from her fears and attempts to coax it faster. This isn't right, she thought, and concentrated fully on the light surrounding her. She let nothing exist but that light and the desire to leave, and willed herself to return.

She opened her eyes, and she was lying on her bed. "A dream?" she whispered, but no. The ache in her throat and hoarseness in her voice were real enough, as was the raw, clawed skin on her arms. Her dreams had shown her the truth.

As loudly as she dared, Sel said, refusing to let her voice waiver, "I am Melglirael Dreamspeaker, the daughter of Melayel Windspeaker and sorceress of the line of Amira. And I am going to do everything in my power to destroy what threatens my home."

Author's note: Whew! I don't think I've ever written that much in a single day. BTW, the inspiration to get this chapter out so fast (heehee, two months is fast for me...) came from everyone who put this story on their watch list, and all reviewers. Thanks, you guys!


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